Eternal Wrath: Public Enemy
by Mark-Owen
Summary: A year has passed since Chloe, Oliver and the League endured a crippling loss. They have to work through the pain to face the growing threat of Lex Luthor, at the top of his power who will stop at nothing to solidify his position and achieve his quest of science. (Part 5 of Eternal Wrath)
1. Chapter 1: Broken, Beaten Shattered

**_AN: Back to work! Miss me? Here it is, Book 3 of Eternal Wrath is all written and edited. Each chapter will be posted every Wednesday. I hope there are still readers around to give me feedback, it's always useful and nice. Enjoy!_**

* * *

 **Chapter 1: Broken, Beaten... Shattered**

* * *

 _'Happiness is just a feeling of euphoria. It's your brain chemistry going into overdrive. That's why so many relationships fail when the honeymoon ends and reality sets in.' - Lex Luthor, Season 6, Episode 3: "Wither"._

* * *

 **April 28th 2011. 03:57 AM UTC-6. Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

A hooded shape walked aimlessly through the low-lit streets of the asleep city. He slowed down when the glow of an all-night shop illuminated his blond hair and chiseled features. The sight of a live TV screen drew him forward until he could make out a familiar shape through the blur.

Intrigued, he stepped even closer, reaching the threshold of the shop. He could hear the hushed tones coming from the TV set so as to not disturb the silence of the street.

 _'_ _"Here we are with Luthorcorp's CEO, Regan Matthews, for this morning economics interview. Mr. Matthews_ _took over the company after_ _a certain Lex Luthor after he was elected President of the USA._ " The journalist turned towards Matthews. " _Tell us Mr. Matthews, isn't it hard to take up the succession of our president?_ "

" _There is certainly a high standard to live up to, I won't deny it._ " Regan smiled. " _I think multiple factors need to be considered: First, the economic environment is improving, slowly but steadily and as an international company, we have noticed this phenomenon in several countries. Second, our competition doesn't have much bite these times..._ "

" _Are you in a monopoly situation?_ " the journalist asked.

" _No, we simply have the advantage currently but that might change in the future._ " Regan replied. " _Take Queen Industries as an example. They once were the number one on their market but they've been rest_ _ing_ _on their_ _laurels_ _and are now in a difficult situation. Of course, having a CEO who's never there doesn't help either._ "

" _Since we're talking Q.I., you seem to have a strong opinion about Oliver Queen, why is that?_ "

" _I know the man, that's it. He's hardly fitted to run a company as large as Q_ _ueen Industries_ _or any company, really. All the time we see he's absent from the lead and I hear his Board is becoming exasperated with him. Mr. Queen probably_ _enjoys_ _the_ _finest_ _things in life with his girlfriend – or maybe not just with her. I can't blame him for having sins like everyone but there has to be a limit somewhere..._ "'

The young man's jaw was tight when he pulled away. He had heard enough. Criticism was a thing he was used to but Regan's words stung because they held a part of truth.

He headed to the darkest part of the city, crossing the street to walk down the entryway of an unaffected underground parking lot. People were already inside and the music blared through the walls. He glanced at the fenced ring surrounded by a mass of hysterics cheering on the fight raging on it. Ignoring the pounding, he passed by them and took up the stairs in the direction of the backroom.

* * *

It didn't matter how many blows he received, Oliver always wanted more. For months he'd been doing this, getting into illegal fight clubs and setting himself up against the toughest possible guys just to feel the physical pain afterwards.

He was bloody, his sweat running down all the planes of his body just as every muscle ached, begging to be spared. Refusing to give up, Oliver stood up again. He barely had time to blink that the already was back on the ground, this time nursing a broken nose.

All around, the crowd cheered or cried. While their presence was loud and overwhelming to most fighters, it didn't have much impact on him. Instead, he felt utterly alone amongst them.

The fight was over in minutes. The bell rang and Oliver was escorted out of the cage as his opponent was declared winner. The next minutes were a blur in his memory. He had received some medical attention from unsuitable people and now found himself in the locker room once more.

He rubbed his aching nose, wincing, and pulled his sports bag out of the wall before he started to pull off his sticking tee-shirt and head for the showers. He felt too much comfort in the warm water and decided to pull the temperature lever all the way down.

It was there, under the ice-cold water pouring down on him, that he first caught a glimpse of two young women coming up from the corridor. The first one was a short-haired blonde whose white blouse knotted between the breasts and short skirt didn't leave much to the imagination. Her companion had a darker skin and her clothing was pretty much inexistent.

His gaze didn't wander over the sultry expressions of the two teenagers or their attractive bodies, he turned his head and closed his eyes, intent on feeling his wounds itch. He was too numb to jump when he felt small hands stroking his back suggestively, nor did he react much when the ebony girl started kissing his neck, a slow hand exploring his chest.

Their words didn't even reach his ears, the beating of his heart drowned out every other sound. The blonde pressed her body against his side and he realized they were both nude. She whispered something in his ear and giggled before slowly getting to her knees maintaining eye-contact with him.

He seethed like a wild animal, grabbing the blonde's wrist, pulled her up and away along with her friend. They stumbled with the strength of his shove, stunned to have been rejected in such a way.

"Leave me alone!" he growled. He wanted to be alone, always alone.

The blonde launched herself into a rant of curses before spitting in his direction. Oliver didn't hesitate to slap her. The girl's head turned, her blonde curls twirling around in the air. Oliver blinked and took a step back, his eyes focused on her hair. "Ch- Chloe?" he whispered.

"I ain't your Chloe bitch, freak!" she yelled. "Screw you!"

They both stormed away from the shower, leaving a confused Oliver behind. He was shaken, his brain troubled and yearning for its dose. He could already feel the strong headache threatening to take over him.

Oliver turned off the water and proceeded to dry himself off. The task was barely done and he already was fumbling into his bag, ripping open a small plastic of white powder. He looked around frantically for the nearest smooth surface.

The pipe ran over the wood of the window edge and he sent his head back, sighing in relief. Oliver rubbed his nose, cleaning any remnant of the substance away while his body felt more alive all of a sudden.

Now he wanted to go back and fight again. It didn't matter who could be paired against him, he felt invincible, no one could take him on, he was sure of it.

The clear light coming from the small window caught his eye and he sighed. It was morning already, the club would be closed for the day now, it was too late for another round in the cage.

Disappointed, the blond billionaire worked around his pain to dress himself and stuffed his dirty clothes into his bag before setting off into the corridor on his way out.

As he walked out of the lockeroom, he had his back to a young brunette girl who watched him shuffle away. Being an involuntary witness of the scene in the shower, she reflected on the reasons that would find someone as famous and rich as Oliver Queen in such a seedy and desolate place. The man was a good fighter and whilst his focus often prevented him to win, he had moves she had never seen before.

There was an aura to him. He looked like a man without a compass in life, someone who had lost his will to live. A broken man.

"Mia!"

She looked right to see the manager shouting at her. Time was up, she just hoped that she would be able to avoid any blow to the face, she needed to look attractive for her other job. Otherwise, Rick would kill her.

* * *

 **April 28th 2011. 06:02 AM UTC-6. Clocktower's penthouse, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

Oliver almost sprawled over the threshold as he got out of the elevator. He grinned, laughing at his antics, until his blurry eyes spotted a familiar figure standing in the middle of the living room. He stilled, his eyes wide.

"Uh... hi..." he slurred over his words.

Chloe shook her head. "I've been waiting for you here all night, worried sick and all you can say is 'hi'?" she said almost in disgust. "Where have you been?"

"I...uh..." A moment of silence saw him helplessly struggling to find his words until he gave up and simply shrugged. He rubbed his nose again.

Chloe noticed it right away. "You're using again, aren't you?" she sighed remembering the countless occasions she had had to look all over the penthouse to find his cocaine stash and wash it down the toilets. "Oliver it's been seven months... you can't keep going on like this. You're going to... to kill yourself." she said, feeling moisture filling her eyes.

He scoffed. "Maybe that's what I've been hoping for all along-"

"No, it's not!" she cut him off angrily. "If you had wanted to commit suicide, you would already be dead!"

He looked down. "Coward.." he muttered to himself.

She calmed down immediately. "Ollie... you don't get it. You want to live but you feel like you don't deserve to. Don't look so surprised, we've been living together for two years now. I'm pretty sure I know almost everything about you." They looked at each other for a long, tense moment. "Don't shut me out again please... I've done nothing but try to get to you and you-"

"Haven't you ever thought that I didn't want to be helped, Chloe?" he broke off harshly.

"What happened to Bart wasn't your fault, Ollie." she said softly.

"Don't say his name!" he shouted, making her jump. "You want to know why I'm sticking around?! It's because of you! You can't get a fucking hint! I want to be alone!"

Chloe had dealt with his burst of anger before. She should have been used to them. Yet, his guilt-fueled rage enhanced by the drugs saw him act in such an unpredictable way she didn't recognize him anymore. The words he used, the things he did... Chloe wasn't sure he even understood the consequences of his actions most of the time. In these moments, holding onto a rational train of thoughts and keeping her emotions at bay proved almost an impossible task.

She stormed his way, her brow furrowed in anger. The sight of her rushing forward had Oliver take a surprised take back as he swallowed hard. She didn't let him leave and soon enough, she took the sides of his face in a firm grip as she stood on her toes, almost reaching eye-level with him.

"You both had a connection and I can't imagine how hard it is for you to have to carry on without him..." she started in a stern, dangerous tone. "Do you really think you're alone with this pain? I'm hurting too! So are Dinah and Vic, AC and Lois! We all feel the same way! No one blames you, no one but yourself. You don't want to hear it but this isn't your goddamn fault, Oliver. It never has been. What happened to him was – and always has been out of your control!"

She opened her mouth to drive her point home when, upon shifting against him, the side of his neck was bared to her view and traces of bright red lipstick smeared against his skin reflected in her eyes. She had to choke back a sob, an intense pain seizing her chest as she let him go and walked backward slowly.

"Maybe you really don't want me here anymore." she whispered, one tear betraying her.

The sight of her crying was hard to bear and her sudden reversal of attitude confused Oliver until he noticed her attention had come from a certain part of his body. His hand touched his neck, smeared lipstick appeared in his palm.

He remembered in horror, the events that took place in the shower. Oliver stared at her, his eyes wide. "It's not what you think, Chloe! I'd- I'd never..."

"You don't need to say anything else." she replied. "I get it, it's over. I won't bother you anymore." she instantly turned back and almost ran towards their bedroom.

"Chloe!" he shouted after her. "I didn't do anything! I... I love you... I..." he finished in whispers, a lump in his throat.

He had been living like his time was counted ever since Bart's death, all he wanted was to feel pain beyond the one his friend's death had brought but having Chloe think the worse of him was the final blow.

He truly was a failure.


	2. Chapter 2: The Purge

**I forgot to add a little note on the first chapter: You should read _Eternal Wrath: Una Historia de Tragedia_ before this one if you haven't already done so. It's a transition one-shot between Distraction and Public Enemy.**

* * *

 **Chapter 2: The Purge**

 _'Remember, Lex. You're the one opening Pandora's box.' - Dr. Hamilton, Season 1, Episode 15: "Nicodemus"._

* * *

 **May 2nd 2011. 09:59 AM UTC-4. White House, Washington D.C, USA.**

A slick black car strolled to a halt in the reserved parking lot, having passed the security checkpoint and been granted access, the chauffeur stayed inside knowing that the woman he was driving would want to handle herself.

She stepped out frigidly and walked towards the entrance without any folder or document in her hands. She showed a pass badge to the security escort, used to the gesture.

"Ma'am Waller." An intendant bowed slightly. "If you may follow me, the President is expecting you."

He went ahead while she sighed and did as told. Amanda Waller wasn't hiding the fact that she was tense. She was well-used to the introduction to the new President taking over but, in her fourteen years career at the head of the most secret branch of the government, this was a unique moment.

Heels clicking loudly against the marble floor of the hall, she dodged several people moving past and to on her way and grumbled under her breath. The few people who made eye contact with her quickly went out of their way to let her past.

Most of them were old timers and knew her well enough to never piss her off. If not, the younger generations would have the same impression through the deadly gaze on her face.

The intendant stopped at the end of the corridor and knocked on the door, poking his head through to announce her presence. A moment later, he turned to her and pushed invited her inside the office.

"The President is ready to see you." he smiled professionally.

Waller's eyes never softened as she watched him and sighed again before crossing the threshold, the door closing behind her. She wasn't new to the oval office's furniture and it never changed during the years no matter who was in power.

This time, she noticed the unusual cleanliness of the place and the lack of people. Every time she had had to visit a president, they would always be surrounded by advisors and subordinates that they would have to kick outside in order to have a private chat.

Now, she was alone in the large room with the presidential chair turned towards the back window. Waller could see the president's black glove on his hand which he rested on the arm chair, his voice floated over to her, he seemed deep in conversation.

"No, don't waste our resources I have the manpower here to locate them." he said quietly as though he didn't know he wasn't alone. "No one says no to me. Besides, all I need is to say the national security is at threat and they'll jump to attention, their hand already reaching for the guns." he chuckled. "Some things never change."

Waller tapped her foot impatiently, unhappy to have to wait for their conversation. After a minute or two of chatting over the phone, a discussion the man had probably let be heard over with sterile words, she started to think it was part of his tactics.

Some of them had wanted to impress her to show who was in command as they knew of her reputation and the fact that she was leading the most effective anti-crime section of the CIA. Well... 'Anti-crime' being a designative word, reality saw them execute much less conventional orders from the White House.

"We'll talk again tomorrow, I'm not in charge anymore but you won't burn out my dollars without my consent." he said. "I trust you Regan."

The obvious click of the phone hanging up and the chair squeaking as it turned around gave her enough time to school her features when the sight of a bald head and a white suit filled her vision.

"Amanda Waller, I suppose." Lex Luthor said as he rose to his feet and rounded the desk.

"Mr. President."

He approached her, sizing her up and down with a snide smirk he barely managed to hide. "Finally, our paths cross." The malice in his tone wasn't lost on her. Her suspicion was at its highest when he shook hands with her, their eyes never leaving the other's face.

"Am I missing a fact, sir?" she asked cautiously.

He made an amused noise. "If by 'fact' you mean a visit to Luthorcorp a year and a half ago during which you left with my most trusted employee, then yes," he said. "You definitely are missing a fact."

Years of experience hid her surprise. "Sir?"

"I'm a resourceful man, Waller." he towered over her. "Not even you and the prestigious Checkmate department could hide from me if I wanted."

"I suppose this isn't a courtesy meeting." she guessed, his intimidation failing on her.

He nodded contemptuously, grabbing a letter from his desk and handing it over to her. "I'm going to need a full list of all your subordinates along with their complete identification files by the end of the week."

Waller had a moment of silence. "This is against the rules of Checkmate sir," she replied curtly. "Every President since Bell knows the people working for me will have their identities protected from everyone outside of Checkmate."

Lex's fist crashed on the desk. "I am not any other president, Waller! You'd better learn that fast!" he raged. "I want Checkmate to step out of the shadows and I will have it, with or without you in command. I am the President of the United States, I pull the strings here!"

"I see." she seethed, holding his gaze coldly. "Then you will have my resignation under forty-eight hours."

"No, no, _no_." Lex waved a finger in the air. "If you want to resign from Checkmate that's your call but you will give me this list before you leave. That is an order."

She smiled pleasantly. "Whatever the president wants." She headed for the door when Lex called her.

"Do not cross me." he warned darkly.

"Goodbye, Mr. President." she said with the same tone and walked out.

* * *

 **May 2nd 2011. 10:13 AM UTC-6. Underground Fight Club, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

A bulky, aging man crossed the corridor leading to the lockeroom, flashes of sun rays fleeting through the small enclosures of the upper walls teasing his dark skin as he suppressed a yawn by holding his fist ahead of his mouth.

He suddenly stopped, his head turned right, he watched agape inside the shower room.

"Queen? Whatcha doing here, boy?"

His surprise was understandable as it was the first time he saw the blond in days. The old man hadn't even known his favorite fighter had been present that night too as he hadn't shown up in the public party room and the cage.

"Shit, boy! Your whiteass look even more tired than last time, motherfucker!" he noted with a laugh.

Oliver sighed, shifting to sit up on the bench as he ran a hand over his face. Little Wallace couldn't have been more right, the young billionaire hadn't slept in days and the signs were clearly written all over his face. He could barely keep his eyes open.

In the months following Bart's death, he had run on little sleep and destroyed his health, living like there was no tomorrow and yet, he still had thought of basic health rules as minimum sleep requirements and eating rations.

He held his stomach as it grumbled painfully. As much as he tried to ignore it, Oliver couldn't deny that he felt as if he had woken up from a horrible nightmare because someone dropped a icy bucket of water over his head.

It took only one thing to have that effect on him – or rather, one person.

Chloe had left. After their argument, he had crashed on the couch and slept for thirteen hours straight. It was well into the evening when he woke up to an empty apartment. She had taken her clothes and stuff with her and left a post-it message on the coffee table by his side.

 _I'm not going to stand and watch you destroy us both. You lost the will to live but I didn't. If you ever decide to take your life back into your hands, I'll be there._

 _Chloe_

He spent the next days awake trying to get in contact with her but her cellphone always kicked him out of the line and then Lois had stopped him from seeing Chloe who he rightfully guessed had taken residence at her cousin's apartment downtown.

The police had come when he had decided to stalk her in front of her building and wait for her down. He badly wanted to tell her the truth, that she got the wrong idea about the lipstick incident but she didn't give him the chance.

His head was pounding. He wasn't thinking clearly, something that remained a constant since Bart's death, but there was a different voice in his head that kept repeating that Chloe wanted him to see things for himself.

Whatever that meant.

His cocaine stash at home had been left untouched. It was a thing Oliver couldn't wrap his mind around because he knew that she had found it. Hell, she hadn't even bothered to put the tiles back into place, showing him that she knew.

Ever since he brought his first dose back at their penthouse, she had taken them as soon as they came on her radar and they ended up being dumped down the toilets. Oliver wasn't even mad, he had been resigned and always bought another one again and again...

This time, he still had the drugs but he didn't feel the need to use them. It remained untouched from the moment he realized Chloe was gone. Six days, he had been clean for six full days and the withdrawal effect was faint despite his heavy usage in the last months.

Oliver guessed his first encounter with the same product back in Panama all these years ago helped for this time. There was also the fact that his mind was more busy thinking about what Chloe was doing – and more, how she was doing – than to focus on the powder in his bag.

That was the moment he noted with a hint of smile that all this time, he had tried to substitute one drug for another. Cocaine was an easy companion to deal with; you couldn't disappoint it and you sure would never feel the guilt of letting it think that things would look up in the future whilst knowing it wasn't true.

Still, cocaine had nothing on Chloe when it came to withdrawal. Oliver was hurting far worse than he would have thought now that she was gone. It precipitated his thoughts into a stark shift. Now all he wanted was to have her back and enjoy her presence to its worth.

Two years. She had been his girlfriend of two years and despite his heart having never beat so fast for another woman, his mind had never even thought of their future. Even before Bart. Why?

Another question plaguing his mind without an answer.

"Y'all right, boy?"

Oliver cleared his throat, standing up with difficulty. "Wouldn't go that far, Wallace." he said hoarsely, joining the other man in the corridor.

"Man, don't you forget your stuff or someone will swipe that shit up and you ain't going to cry to Wallace caus' that won't be my problem!" For an ex-street gangster turned illegal fight club manager, Little Wallace had a good heart.

"Keep it." Oliver mumbled. "Got no use for it anymore." His bags contained dirty clothes from his fights, mostly covered in his own blood, alcohol, cocaine and one grand in cash. Nothing he would need in the future.

Little Wallace shrugged. "Your call, my man."

The blond took a couple of steps before stumbling, almost collapsing had it not been for the wall standing there to support him. The old man immediately grabbed him up. "Boy you ain't fit to go out there alone. Look at ya, barely standing by yourself and all."

Oliver took a deep breath, grateful for the support of Wallace. "Just help me out there, will you? I don't even know why I came here of all places..."

"You ain't droppin' on me, right?" Wallace asked. "'Cause this nigga right here need your tough ass back in that cage, you feel me?"

"Sorry, buddy but... all that, it was a mistake. You won't see me here anymore." the billionaire admitted, pulling his weight forward to show the other man he wanted to move.

Wallace remained at his spot. "Oh, shit you ain't kiddin'? Man! I was making some real money on ya boy... A'ight, Wallace ain't a fool if you want to leave, you go, we good!"

"I appreciate, Wallace, I really do but I need to go outta here sooner rather than later." Oliver said, once again trying to pull the other man forward.

"Wait here, boy, I got someone who's gonna help ya back home. You can trust her, she a pretty straight honest girl, y'know?" Wallace pulled his cellphone to his ear. "Mia? Where you at, girl? Come down here I need your help with something."

* * *

 **May 2nd 2011. 10:48 AM UTC-6. Clocktower's doorstep, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

"I really don't think it was necessary to help me all this way." Oliver half complained as he walked alongside the short girl down the street leading to the Clocktower.

"Right, like you didn't just start to walk by yourself half a block ago." Mia shot back.

The blond smirked faintly, pulling his coat closer to himself and being mindful to keep his hood up to hide his face. People seeing him in his state was the last thing he needed to at the moment. The streets were full and a swarm of people were rushing past them.

"Tell me to mind my own business if I bother you but... aren't you the one who fights just after my shift?" Oliver inquired.

Mia glanced at him. "What you're troubled to find a woman in the cage too? I know I'm the only one but-"

"Actually," Oliver interrupted her. "you're doing good, you have moves most of the guys at the club don't know and you know how to balance yourself. You're pretty damn good if you ask me."

"Really?" she asked, a glint of hope in her eyes.

"I'm just saying, if you want a manager or something, I could help."

"You can't help me." Mia rolled her eyes. It got the billionaire's attention. "What? A guy already tried to rid me of my pimp and promised he would help me out of the streets. The result? He's nowhere to be found and Rick is out of jail and found me again. Back to square one."

Their reached the Clocktower. Oliver turned towards her, a frown on his face. "I don't know who that guy is but I'm sure I have more connections than him and I would be happy to help." he got a card out of pocket and handed it to her. "If you need anything, call me. This is my personal number."

Mia took a step back. "Keep it. I don't need it." she replied, her tone harder all of a sudden.

"You sure?"

"Yes! Now just go up there, sleep it off and don't ever come back to the club." she dropped her last words with the same tone and walked off before Oliver had the chance to do anything else.

He watched her leave, all the while wondering what he had done wrong. His tired mind quickly caught up with him and he decided to follow her advice, a good night – or rather day – of sleep and he would be able to focus on resolving his issues again.

This girl intrigued him and he made a mental note to look up her status later. That would come once he found a way to explain to Chloe what had happened that damned night and to apologize to her for his behavior. She was his priority and that wouldn't change.

If anything, it would only get stronger.

* * *

 **May 10th 2011. 02:31 PM UTC-4. Verizon Center, Washington D.C, USA.**

Amanda Waller looked behind her shoulder quickly, picking up her pace as she traveled down the stairs towards the underground parking lot. Echoes of foreign footsteps followed her in the dark and narrow space, she knew she had seen the shadow of a man behind her.

If her instincts were right, which was often the case, this was the same man she had seen following her after her business meal with representatives of different private security corporations half an hour ago.

Her heart seemed to back up her feelings as it started to beat faster. Then again, at her age, it might have been due to the fact that she was practically running down these stairs and physical exercise was something she wasn't used to anymore.

Still, her mind was sharper than ever and there was a reason she had made it up the ladder to the point of leading Checkmate. The door flashing a large number '1' in yellow paint caught her eye and she dashed through it, closing it immediately after herself.

Amanda waited in the corner, ready to jump the man tailing her as soon as he appeared. She could hear him moving faster down the stairs and she prepared herself to bolt. It came at the moment that her body was at its most tense, when the man's footsteps came louder, that her ears registered him walking past the door and down to another floor.

A twinge of disappointment went through her while she sighed in relief, glad that her instincts were proven wrong on this one. Now free of any suspicious thought, Amanda picked her cellphone, noting that even through the thick concrete of the parking lot, she could raise connectivity and decided to make a call.

Her meeting with Luthor had forced her hand, she would not betray her employees for a man she knew was dirty. The president's order to deliver their names had only made her activate a failsafe procedure requiring Checkmate to be dismantled and detached from any governmental influence.

Once done, her second in command would take over the reins and she would retire to a safe location while he led their would-be gone rogue organization, officially called: The Suicide Squad.

Her car was in sight when her correspondent picked up the call. "Flagg? I'm-"

The loud detonation echoed through the entire structure, activating the alarm of several vehicles close-by in a maddening swarm of noise. Amanda's body crashed on the concrete, revealing a man in a dark suit behind her, standing at the mouth of the second-level entryway.

He hid his weapon under his overcoat and walked away, mindful of staying out of the camera's eye. On his way to the ground level and, leaving Waller bleeding out behind, he texted a message to an unknown party.

 _Complete._


	3. Chapter 3: Edges All Around

**Chapter 3: Edges All Around**

 _'I think you got better things to worry about.' - Mia Dearden, Season 9, Episode 10: "Disciple"._

* * *

 **May 12th 2011. 07:29 AM UTC-6. Lois's flat, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

"Alright, I'm going!" Lois announced, stumbling her way to the door. She passed by Chloe and froze when her cousin didn't say anything.

The Daily Planet reporter watched her cousin type on her laptop with a frenzy she never had before, each stroke of her fingers on the keyboard seemed harder than necessary. "You should go out, Chlo. It's been two weeks and you've only left my apartment for two things: coffee and the occasional muffin."

"I'd love to, Lo, but I'm busy now." the blonde shot back in an irritated voice.

Lois sighed. "Ollie's an asshole, but there are still people around who love you. I know I do."

The other woman's fingers stilled, she glanced at her, her eyes soft and shining. "I'm sorry, I just... I need some more time that's all..."

The brunette went forward and hugged Chloe for a moment. "Right, I know... I just hate seeing you like that, you should be happy, you deserve to be." She felt her cousin nod as she remained quiet. "Okay, I'm really going to be late now, see you tonight!"

Lois was out of the door in a second, she rushed down the stairs, stumbling several times before reaching down into the hall on her way to her car.

This wasn't a time in her life where she could afford to be late. Lex had been elected president of the country but he still had a tight vice around the Planet through Regan Matthews and his different appointed editors.

As much as she wished to be paying Oliver a visit and give him a piece of her mind, Lois had no desire to lose her job over him. She would find him at the right time and he would feel her wrath. What had happened to him these last few months?

Well, she knew the answer but it didn't excuse his behavior. Once upon a time he and Chloe had been living the dream and she really thought that he was past the playboy ways of his youth. Apparently, Lex had hurt him enough through Bart that he found it easier to fall back into the same old pattern which had made him miserable ever since his parent's death.

To his credit, Oliver wasn't the only one who closed in on himself after the loss of their little devil. The whole league had split to their own ways, leaving each other to lick their wounds and never cross path again because it would remind them of the one they lost and the unbearable feeling that came with the thought would overwhelm them. No one deserved to live that way.

She knew herself, that she missed the little guy and the way life was when they were all still around. Even after Clark's departure and the feeling of abandon she had felt then, life had been easy and happier when she was around Chloe, Oliver and the team.

As Lois parked her car behind the Daily Planet and made her way into the building, she wondered if things would ever be able to go back that way again. Chloe was desperately trying to locate her friends and convince them to try to stick together again but to no avail. So far, she had only managed to find Dinah and she avoided any attempt of communication her cousin had established.

No one could really blame her, even though Lois knew the country needed them now more than ever, sometimes it was just too much to handle.

 _That son of a bitch of Luthor really did wonders on them all._ Her scowl frightened a few interns and they promptly changed directions when she made her way to the elevators. A tall guy in a brown suit boarded into the cage and activated it.

"Hold the doors!" she exclaimed.

His hand shot out to do as she said and Lois thanked him gratefully as she settled at his side. "Thank you." she mumbled again when her eyes noticed he had activated the bullpen floor.

"I'm sorry, Miss Lane?" the man queried.

She looked at him in surprise, pleased to meet the handsome face of the dark stranger. "That would be me, did we have an appointment or something?" she gasped. "Don't tell me you're my source on the Gathnet story and I've forgotten about our meeting!"

He seemed amused. "No..."

"You're our new editor then?" she started to become flustered. "Hi, Lois Lane, I work in the basement."

The man took her hand in his as she introduced herself, he looked just as entertained as confused. "Bruce Wayne, and no I'm not your editor."

"Wayne?!" she shrieked. "As in the billionaire from Gotham, Bruce Wayne? Oh my god! I'm sorry I didn't recognize you!"

Bruce couldn't contain a grin. "Don't apologize, I'm quite happy to walk in public incognito. In fact, I've been meaning to meet you, Miss Lane, I believe I was a bit early when I came because you weren't at your desk."

"You've been meaning to meet me?"

"I've been told there was only one Lois Lane in this world." he humored her.

For once, Lois found herself at a loss of words, her quick wits stripped from her and she felt quite stupid staring up at him while he clearly expected her to answer. "I.. I... I..."

"No need to feel cornered, I'm really sorry if you get that vibe from me, I'm just looking for someone in your circle of friends." Bruce rescued her.

"My friends?" she finally found her voice back. "I had no idea my life was so public..."

The guest from Gotham laughed. "I mean, don't get me wrong," Lois spoke quickly. "I know I'm a bit loud and brash sometimes but that's just when I'm anxious or flustered and people look at me like... like you're doing right now. Oh god why are you looking at me like that?"

Bruce's eyes were soft and focused on her, Lois found her knees weakening and her mouth dry all of a sudden. The man seemed to have caught himself staring as he cleared his throat uncomfortably before breaking eye contact.

"I think everybody knows who Oliver Queen's friends are, at least, the people reading tabloids do." he said after a moment.

Lois's face hardened. "Oliver? What do you want with him?"

"Did I catch you at a wrong time?" Bruce looked taken aback by her reaction.

She blushed and rubbed her temple. "I'm sorry Mr Wayne, it's just that... it's complicated."

"I understand. Could you please tell him that I'm looking for him? I would like to talk with the man while I'm still in town."

"Can't you just drop at his office? I'm sure his security won't dare throwing Bruce Wayne out." Lois replied with wide eyes.

"According to his assistant, he hasn't checked in for weeks." Bruce sighed. "It's vital that I have a word with Oliver, there's more than money at stake."

"I'm not sure..."

"What about your cousin? She must know where he is."

"Chloe?" Lois gasped.

"Yes, they seem to be doing everything together. That's a good thing in a couple." Bruce admitted.

The young woman frowned. She was about to retort something unpleasant when her eyes found his again and all fight evaded her.

"Yes, it is." she sighed. "You'll have to excuse me Mr. Wayne, but... I'm already late for work..."

Bruce remained silent for an instant, his expression guarded as he watched her. "I understand." he finally said. "I won't hold you up any longer, just if you see Oliver, please tell him we _have_ to meet."

Lois smiled and nodded. "Sure."

He ran a hand up and down her arm. "Thank you." he told her sincerely before coming to his senses and pulling back from her. He seemed almost sheepish as he cleared his throat, looking at her through wide eyes. "Goodbye."

Lois wet her dry throat and had to take a deep breath before she whispered. "Bye." in such a timid manner that she had to wonder where the intrepid reporter Lois Lane had gone.

Watching him walk away, it took her a long moment to shake herself out of her stupor and burst into the Daily Planet bullpen in typical fashion, making the interns jump in surprise while her colleagues simply sighed and rolled their eyes, used to her antics.

* * *

 **May** **12th** **2011\. 09:45** **PM UTC-** **6\. Suicide Slums, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

Nighttime was approaching, the streets were bathed in a soft reddish hue while the traffic on the road seemed to decrease as people were coming home after a long day at work.

There seemed to be only one exception to this rule on the 36th street, in the middle of the Suicide Slums.

Cars went to and fro, letting their drivers eye the women on the sidewalk and eventually, stopping at one's level if interested.

Most of these cars were anonymous-looking, almost none of the men passing through this part of the town were anyone influent or rich. This kind of men didn't have the money to pay escort-girls to realize their fantasies.

It was almost natural that they would turn to the more traditional way of meeting women. At least, the pimps were not complaining. The neighborhood was poor and their networks were almost the only successful "enterprises" around.

It may have been the reason why the guttural revving of a sportscar engine made all the heads in the perimeter snap up to attention. Some of the men whistled, their interest in the women almost forgotten as they jealously admired the sleek curves of the luxury car strolling past them.

The girls stepped forward and did their best to catch the driver's attention, vainly, they realized, as the Aston Martin finally slowed down and stopped at a blond girl's level.

She sucked in a deep breath as the driver's window rolled down and a familiar face encouraged her forward. She knew she couldn't refuse him or her pimp would kill her. Out of choice, she sighed and rounded the car, opening the door before climbing aboard.

The man's face remained neutral as he guided them away into the heart of the city.

"Take off your wig." he said.

"Why?"

He glanced at her, annoyed. "Do as I said, Mia."

The teenager glared at him but complied, stripping her scalp from the fake blond locks under which hid long, dark hair.

"Happy?" she half-snapped at him.

It froze the mood in the car, they spent almost ten minutes in silence before the man sighed deeply.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be rude." he apologized. "Your wig reminded me of someone and it hurts to think about her."

"I see." Mia replied, clearly unimpressed as she crossed her arms in front of her and looked out the window. "You don't have to explain yourself Oliver, after all you didn't get me here to talk." she let out a mirthless laugh.

Oliver suddenly pulled over and halted the car in a narrow alley, barely wide enough to accommodate the width of the vehicle.

Mia looked at him in surprise. "You want to do it here?"

"No Mia I don't want to do 'it' here nor anywhere else!" he exclaimed, his eyes hard and unforgiving.

She opened and closed her mouth several times. "I..."

"Look..." he cut her off. "I'm not here to use you, all I want is to help."

Mia snorted. "I don't need help!" her eyes went for the handle and she realized the wall was too close to the car to let her open the door.

Clearly, Oliver wanted her to listen, he wouldn't give her another choice.

"So everything's right in your life and you've got nothing to complain about, right?" he asked sardonically. "Selling your body to perverts is your dream? Is that why you go to Wallace's club every week and fight?"

Her jaw locked and she had to blink her tears away. As much as she hated to admit it, he had struck a nerve and it pained her that she didn't have much control over her emotions. Her hand gripped the handle hard enough to have her knuckles turn white.

"Let me out." she demanded in a wavering voice.

"You need to hear me out, it's not over yet..."

She pulled the door open, it rattled against the wall. She wouldn't be able to slip through the hole but she got a little satisfaction knowing there would be a nasty gash on the side of the car.

"Let me out or I'll scream." She watched him straight in the eye. "I don't think you want to be on the headlines tomorrow morning for sequestrating a prostitute."

That made him pause and she was sure he realized she was serious as his expression turned grim. "So that's how it is?" There was a hint of disappointment in his voice. "Okay." he sighed. "Close the door, I'll get us outta here."

After a moment of hesitation, she did as she was told and watched as he put the car in reverse. The moment they were out of the alley, she leaped out of the car.

"I'm sure your pimp will appreciate to see you come back from a big hit without the jackpot." she froze and looked back at him.

Oliver waved a large stack of money towards her. She swallowed hard and slowly walked back towards him, extending her hand.

He pulled back a little, causing their eyes to meet. "I'm not asking for anything, Mia." he said gently. "All I want is to help you out of this situation and I'm not asking for anything in return."

She opened her mouth, unsure of what she even wanted to say but he spoke up before she had the occasion. "Think about it this way: what have you got to lose?"

He lowered the money into her palm and gave her a small smile. "Promise me, you'll think about it, at least?"

Mia had to wet her throat before nodding weakly. "Thanks." she said softly, and, after glancing at his face again one last time, she disappeared into the night.

Oliver sighed and shook his head before readjusting his glasses. "Poor kid."

* * *

 **May** **12th** **2011\. 10:12** **PM UTC-** **6\. Undisclosed** **Location.**

"Hello?"

A large man with gray hair examined the pictures on the desk in disbelief. He shifted the phone to his other ear and spoke in a clear and strong voice devoid of emotion.

"I need to speak to him." he said.

"Please state your name and the date of your first operation, agent." the previously warm and welcoming voice of the female interlocutor took on a tone similar to his.

"Agent White Bishop, 04091979."

"Thank you, I will patch you through to him." the woman answered.

The White Bishop nodded to himself and lifted the picture of a woman lying face down on the concrete of an underground parking lot.

"Is the line secure?" A male voice echoed on the other end of the line.

"Affirmative, sir." The White Bishop confirmed.

"What is it, Flagg?"

"The White Queen is dead, sir."

There was a long pause. "Is this confirmed information?"

"I'm afraid so, sir. I sent two agents on the field." Flagg explained. "The ping back was positive."

The other man took a long, drawn out sigh. "Well... I... to say that this is a surprise is an understatement." he replied in a much more vulnerable tone. "Waller was a damn fine commander and I never thought she would end up being KIA. Please transmit my condolences to your unit."

Flagg nodded sadly. "Appreciated, sir."

"Did she leave any intel or do you have any lead as to why she was put down? Is the White King up to date on this information?"

"Negative, sir and I would suggest you do not contact him." Flagg said with a sense of urgency.

"Why are you contacting _me_ then? I am not your direct commander."

"Sir," Flagg continued. "The White Queen feared that it was her own king who put out the heat. Her post-mortem directives have just been sent to me and it orders me to refer to the Black King about plan Triple Seven."

"This is really happening!" The Black King exclaimed in shock.

"Sir?" Flagg asked. "May I ask what plan Triple Seven, is?"

The Black King could be heard taking a deep breath. "It means that we cut off the ties with the White King and the Black Queen, Flagg! We're going underground!"

"Sir?" Flagg asked numbly.

"Checkmate is dead, my dear Bishop." The Black King explained. "From now on, we are the Suicide Squad. Execute Procedure Zero and stand by for new orders."

"Yes, sir!"

"And Flagg? Remember that from now on... the government _is_ the enemy."


	4. Chapter 4: I Am Not A Bad Man

**Chapter 4: I Am Not A Bad Man**

 _'Groucho Marx said there's only one way to find out if a man is honest. Ask him. If he says yes... he must be crooked.' - Milton Fine (Brainiac), Season 5, Episode 4: "Aqua"._

* * *

 **May** **22nd** **2011\. 11:00** **AM UTC-6. Undisclosed** **Location.**

There were three things Lex Luthor would never forget in life: His education, Clark Kent's betrayal, and the claws of the beast.

The mere thought of the monster woke up the pain in his side. Lex couldn't quite silence his grunt as he skimmed his healthy hand over it while its gloved companion made a fist of itself.

"Are you hurting again?" a familiar voice asked. "May it remind you of your arrogance of that night!" the voice continued in a sneer. "How could you ever think you could take on that Doomsday yourself?"

The mocking laugh of the man at his side mixed with the pain in his hip had Lex grit his teeth to contain his anger.

"Why don't you ask Lutessa to kiss it away? Oh that's right! She's gone!" Lionel laughed.

Lex glared at him. "Shut up!" he growled and went to dig into his breast pocket.

"Mr. President?" a third voice exclaimed. He turned his glare on a young looking man watching him as if he didn't get what was going on.

"Did I talk to you?" Lex said. "So you don't get to say a thing!" he clamped down the intruder's mouth before he could reply.

At his side, Lionel smirked. "I get this is still a sore matter!"

Lex Luthor, the president of the USA, sent one last withering glance towards the ghost of his father before his fingers pulled two pills out of his bright white suit which he dry swallowed the next second.

He sighed just as the car braked and stopped. The pain was gone for now, as was his father, and he had a high security facility to visit.

"Now," he addressed the surprised assistant in front of him. "Now's your moment of glory!" his smile couldn't quite cover the coldness of his character, that much he knew, but it made him at least more open and trusting. Especially to the younger generations like the man staring at him uncomfortably.

"Follow me!" Lex felt livelier as he climbed out of the limo and paced towards one huge and smooth structure. For once, the gigantic set of three doors were all open.

He knew it was done so as a courtesy to his visit. It took at least fifteen minutes to pull each door open and just as much time to reverse the action.

On the other end of the hall they formed, stood a group of people. Four of them were more security guards to combine themselves with the small half-dozen of men protecting Lex and his assistant.

The last man waiting for them was one Lex particularly appreciated. His tall and frail body were a strange contrast with his pot belly and the layer of fat budging out behind his neck like one large lump.

The arms of his white, sterile coat went up and down as he rubbed his hands together, an expression akin to contentment on his sinister face while Lex and his assistant were escorted his way.

"Vuuren!" Lex greeted warmly. "What's new since my last visit? This is the press-attaché of the White House, Lee..."

"... Gascogne." The young man supplied in a rather timid fashion. "Nice to meet you."

Vuuren examined him from head to toe several times before turning his attention to the president, a big grin appearing on his face. "There have been many, many new things, Mr. Luthor." he put a friendly hand on Lex's shoulder and gestured for him to get into the building. "We're making a lot of progress lately!"

The scientist put in a password into the device on the side of a steel door, an operation he repeated three times, each time typing a different code. Lex, being aware of the strict security protocol as he designed it himself, watched Vuuren going through an iris scan before being granted access.

The pistons within the door groaned and a loud clack followed. Vuuren looked back to Lex and Lee Gascogne, his grin more sinister than ever.

"Welcome to the future!" he declared, gripping the wheel on the door and turning it halfway to the right to unlock the final mechanism and allowing him to pull it open.

Immediately, an onslaught of cries and wails assaulted them. Lex and Vuuren didn't flinch but Gascogne almost let his pen and clipboard slip through his fingers as his instincts told him to cover his ears while a shudder went through him.

"What is this?" The young man let the question escape him.

Lex sent a cold glare his way but it was Vuuren's grin which had him frozen on spot.

"Ignore it." he advised. "To us, this is background noise. We would be worried if they didn't scream because that would mean we're not doing our jobs well."

The noise never stopped. From the seemingly endless, clinical corridor bordered by cell doors on each side, it felt like any and all of the people hidden in there were screaming at the top of their lungs together, in horror, pain or despair.

How many of them were here? No visitor could guess. Their agony was so overwhelming to any unused ears that there could be thousands, if not tens of thousands.

"But... but..." Gascogne's terror was so present Lex could almost feel it seep into the air and mix itself with the already present feeling of fear in the atmosphere. "What is this place?"

Lex and Vuuren shared a look. "No one is allowed to talk about it outside of the facility and its official name is classified." The president explained. "The subjects of this program unanimously call it The Camp From Hell. I'm not as pessimistic, I like to think of it as The Place of All Possibilities."

Noticing the stare of astonishment Gascogne placed on him, Lex raised an eyebrow.

"They're not..." Lee heaved, looking like he was going to be sick. "They're not here by choice."

None of the three men really knew if it was a question or an observation. Vuuren supposed it didn't matter, his beady eyes stared at him like a vulture circling a dying animal.

"Of course not, how many people would agree to be part of a scientific program designed to push our set of boundaries without respecting human ethics?"

"This is evil." The young man gaped at them. "Why would you-"

Lex let out a small laugh. "Evil? Robert McNamara once said that in order to do good, sometimes one had to do evil. This is exactly what we're doing here. Why did you think I gave Dr. Vuuren the permission to ignore any law protecting all living creatures? For pleasure? I hate this as much as you do!"

Vurren's grin slipped for a second, an act unnoticed by Lex who kept hammering his point home.

"If you were in my situation you would realize that this is the only way to finally have Humanity evolve the way it should have decades ago when the Nazis made so many ground-breaking improvements in science in their extermination camps which benefited all of us! Is this evil? Yes, but that's a necessary evil!"

He waved his gloved hand around in the air. "All of these subjects have special abilities." Gascogne visibly stiffened. "The public doesn't know about them but they're a threat... which you're a part of."

"What?"

Lex's glare turned cold. "You thought you were blending in so well with the rest of the staff, weren't you?" You underestimated the power of our intel network and my own experience."

Lee took a few fearful steps backwards. "I'm not a threat! All I want is to live a normal life! I didn't ask for this!"

Two guards appeared behind him, their gloved hands grabbing his arms. "NO!" his voice shook. "Let me go, please! I beg you! I'm not dangerous!"

Lex waved him off. "If you knew the number of times I heard this rhetoric... You have the ability to drain the power of any living being you touch; your victims are left as shells of themselves, too weak both physically and mentally to even stand up for weeks! How is this not dangerous?"

"It was an accident! I didn't want to!" Gascogne cried, slipping to his knees. "I swear I didn't..."

The bald man, the reason of his predicament, knelt in front of him, his face a mask of calmness and self-control.

"Accidents do not excuse those who make them." he said, a hint of sympathy in his words. "Consciously or not, your kind is a danger for all of us, maybe even for yourselves. For as long as I am in power, I will not tolerate it." he sighed and was careful to drop his black hand on the young man's shoulder.

"Your life as you know it is over. The outside world will be told you died a selfless and heroic death and your family will be taken care of, you have my word. It won't help you but, for what it's worth: I'm sorry. You will be living a painful existence until your death and maybe even beyond that but please, take solace in the fact that your presence here will improve human condition throughout the globe."

Gascogne doubled over and emptied the contents of his stomach, his entire frame shaking as Lex leaped back and examined his shoes. _Still shining._

Looking back at the facility's newest inmate, he was faced by the anguish on his face. Lex sighed and nodded at the guards to lead him to his cell.

"No, NO!" Gascogne's screams mixed in with the thousands of others in such a raw fashion that nobody could distinguish his shouts from the rest anymore.

Lex called after him. "The country is thankful for your sacrifice!"

Gascogne paid no more attention to him, preferring to struggle against his captors in hope to free himself from their grip. The two brutes were having none of it and threw him into an empty cell.

Lex pursed his lips and rubbed a hand on his forehead. "What will be his matriculation?" he addressed Vuuren.

The scientist popped up in front of him, looking down to his clipboard. "Subject 2025, Mr. Luthor." he glanced at the other man contentedly. "I have to thank you for bringing us such a unique specimen yourself, do you think you will visit him?"

"Probably." Lex admitted. "He still worked for me for a few weeks and he was a good kid."

"Yes, yes I understand." Vuuren licked his lips. "Now, are you ready to review our progress?"

"More than ready." The other man replied.

Vuuren showed the direction of his office. "This way please, Mr. President." he said, starting by his side down the corridor, walking past every cell without so much as a glance at them.

"By the way, I have to say the secret services have been very efficient and with all these new arrivals we are starting to be short on staff. This might become a problem."

"Talk to Miss Reiser about it." Lex cited his Secretary of Defense.

"Very fine." Vuuren acquiesced and let Lex step inside a wooden sculptured room, closing the door of the office behind them.

Three hours went by. It was dark when Lex Luthor was escorted back to his limo, the presidential convoy starting for the airport.

Inside the car's dim quietness, Smallville's most famous son groaned and put down a glass of scotch to rub his side for the second time that day.

"What a marvelous act you gave to that child!" an enthusiastic voice exclaimed from the adjoining seat. "God, Lex! 'Thank you for your sacrifice, the nation is thankful', such a theatrical power it almost gave me chills!"

Lex rolled his eyes, taking back his glass. "I figured it would be you." he muttered.

"Who else would you rather see congratulate you than your good old dad?" Lionel asked. "Clark? Lana? Or that faithful Tess?"

Lex scoffed. "Only you would have the nerve to mention the best friend I ever had betray me, my ex-trophy wife and the woman I love."

"Someone has to keep the president on his toes, son." his father replied in a sage tone. "You do not want to lose your wits in the next five years because no one dared to challenge you, do you? How else do you want to defend your seat?"

Lex watched him, amused. "It's always been typical of you to underestimate me. Do you really think there will be another fair election in this country? America doesn't need democracy, it wants a strong leader!" He took one long sip of the auburn liquid, relishing in satisfaction as it burned down his throat. "And I intend to live up to the expectations."

Lionel looked at him, stunned for a moment. "Well I can only admire your determination, Lex; but do you really think it will be this easy?"

He smirked. "I am the most powerful man in the world, who will ever be able to take me down?"

Lionel shook his head. "Son, take it from an old man who's been in a similar situation in the past: arrogance is your worst enemy." he revealed wisely. "It always will be."


	5. Chapter 5: All In Due Time

**Chapter 5: All In Due Time**

 _'You were living like you had a death wish, Oliver.' - Chloe Sullivan, Season 9, Episode 5: "Roulette"._

* * *

 **July** **9th** **2011\. 08:40** **AM UTC-** **6\. Somewhere on the seashore.**

The relaxing noise of the ocean's waves crashing onto the shore came into the house through the open double doors.

Inside, a cellphone shuddered and beeped; its soft tune breaking the quiet atmosphere reigning over the shattered glass and the tipped-over furniture.

It rang, the toned-down pings becoming more insistent. Nothing moved. As if the established order of things dictated that no one shall be able to hear its tune.

It rang and rang again.

And no one came.

* * *

 **July** **9th** **2011\. 01:23 PM UTC-** **6\. Clocktower's penthouse, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

"Ah!"

A skilled hand pushed Mia's fist out of the way, the young girl jerked her head to shake off the beads of sweat covering her skin before she tried the same attack from the opposite side.

"Watch your footing!" Oliver ordered, pointing to his own whilst he literally danced around her static figure. "Watch your footing, I said!"

Mia growled and sent her foot up, in his direction. Her mentor evaded her kick at an impressive speed and, before she knew it, her supporting leg was kick off and she crashed down.

"What did I say?!" Oliver's harsh voice didn't give her a moment to recover her wits. "Damn it! You were making progress up until now!" he extended an arm to help her stand up.

Mia glared and pushed his hand away, preferring to find her feet on her own. The man scoffed and went straight for the wet bar, pouring himself a generous dose of whiskey.

"I see." Mia shook her head. "You're having a bad day again? What your girl's closed off at her cousin's and refuses to see you so you're taking your anger out on me? Yeah, real mature!"

It was Oliver's turn to send a menacing look her way. "Watch it! I'm giving you a way out of the shit hole that's your life! Not happy with it? Take the door, I don't care!"

Mia raised an eyebrow. "You know what? I'll do just that because I didn't sign up for being your punching ball!" _Asshole_. She grasped her sport-bag, slipped on her shoes and stormed off towards the elevator.

Oliver's guts clenched when the familiarity of the scene struck him and he had to fight off the bile in his throat to find his words. "Wait!"

She froze and turned around, seeing him practically run towards her.

"I... I'm sorry... for what I said." he continued while looking at the ground. "I didn't mean that, it's just that your words struck a nerve because you're right: I'm having a bad day but it's worse than just Chloe avoiding me for once."

Mia frowned, having already forgiven him. "I thought she was the only thing on your mind, I mean, forgive the words but you're practically stalking her in any way you can."

Oliver took a deep breath. "It's more than that." he said, willing to end the conversation here until he saw the confusion on her face.

He sighed and walked back into his penthouse, Mia following him until he crashed down on the couch and ran a hand over his face.

"Where do I even begin?"

 _Oliver sat on the hood of his gray sedan, fidgeting with his keys in his hands all the while wondering what he was even doing so early in the morning in such a desolated place._

 _There was another place where he wished to be at the moment and it certainly wasn't Metropolis's abandoned trash career. He had in mind the apartment where the beautiful blonde who haunted his dreams ever since she walked out of his life currently resided._

 _Even a couple of months after her departure and his clashing with Lois when he tried to force her door, he hadn't been able to steal even one glimpse of Chloe._

 _Yet, he knew she was hiding at her cousin's. Everything was pointing to it but, she remained hidden in there and only got out when she had to and when she knew he wasn't around._

 _Oliver's lack of presence at Queen Industries wasn't appreciated by the Board of Directors who often summoned him to put in more hours. It usually was when Chloe preferred to get out._

 _Then, there was Mia who was becoming a fixture in his life and pulled him even more away from Chloe. He didn't regret it, thought. Helping Mia was, he hoped, a message to Chloe that he wanted to fight off his demons to try and be more like his past self._

 _Oliver had his doubt about the reception of this message to the woman he loved. The tabloids were having a field day with each picture of him with Mia they managed to steal. The innuendos weren't even subtle anymore._

 _These papers greatly affected his public image and thus, his everyday life. His reputation was now gone, he was back to being a heartless womanizer whose attention was now even focused on younger girls._

 _Amidst all this trouble, Oliver had to wonder if every decision he took, no matter its intention, was always going to backfire._

 _Strong headlights blinded him and he had to raise a hand over his glasses and squint to make out the shape of a black car approaching him at a slow pace._

 _It went through every bump of the steep path before stopping a yard in front of him. Oliver intently watched the car and barely covered a scoff once his eyes took in the red hair of the driver walking up to him._

 _He looked down to his keys and continued to play with them._

" _I actually didn't expect you to be here on your lonesome." The driver stated. "What if you'd been invited by someone hostile?"_

 _Oliver let out a small laugh, his gaze still down. "You're not trying to tell me you haven't ever been hostile to me, are you Tess?"_

 _The redhead raised an eyebrow. "I think I had legitimate reasons to be mad at you don't you think?_

 _For the first time since her arrival, Oliver looked at her, a mask of cynical humor on his face. "Do you still expect an apology after all this time? Because I gotta tell you: I tried that, twice." he smirked. "I believe each time your only answer was a slap and then you yelling at me. Well, I think we can even count you working for Lex as another way of revenge."_

 _Tess crossed her arms and looked away for a moment. "Not everything has to do with you, Oliver."_

 _He shook his head. "Why the meeting, then? I hope you're not here to get your anger and frustration out on me because I'm telling you now: I'm done playing this game."_

 _Tess sighed. "You haven't changed, Oliver."_

" _Right!" he muttered, climbing down the hood of his car and rounding it, pulling his door open. "You just proved my point."_

" _I never thought Green Arrow would give up so easily!"_

 _Oliver froze, tension creeping up his neck and shoulders. Any and all idea of leaving slipped from his mind as he turned around. "What did you say?" he couldn't keep the shock out of his tone._

" _Now that was a surprise." Tess ignored his question. "You were never evil but I can't say I ever pictured you as a selfless savior."_

 _Oliver approached her dangerously. "So you came back from under whichever rock you've been hiding all this time for what? Blackmailing me? Is that what Lex sent you for?"_

" _Lex didn't send me! I'm not working for him anymore!"_

" _Yeah, right!" he laughed mirthlessly. "You know, what? Tell everyone what you know, I don't care. I don't have anything to lose anymore."_

 _He turned on his heels and walked back to his car. It took several moments for Tess to come out of her stupor._

" _I need your help!"_

 _Her voice, for once devoid of any filter, now trembled with emotions Oliver had often struggled with: fear and despair. He stopped moving but didn't turn around._

" _I'm part of a unit which main design is to take Lex down but we know very little about his true self, we need you, we need the Justice League to help us!"_

 _Oliver looked over his shoulder. "Why?"_

 _Tess gulped and took a step forward. "You fought against him for years, you're the only ones who managed to make him change his plans out of fear of being caught. That's why we need you, because you scare him."_

 _He closed his eyes and did his best to ease the pressure inside of him threatening to bring him to his knees. "No." his whisper barely even reached his own ears. "I'm sorry, Tess. I can't."_

" _Don't do this!" she begged when he resumed walking away. "Please, there's still a chance."_

" _A chance?" Oliver's jaw tightened and he exploded. "You think there's still a chance?! Wake up, Tess! Lex fucking won the war!"_

 _She had to take a step back when he revealed the extend of his fury to her. "He became president and he crushed the rest of us!"_

 _He paused for a long moment, his gaze drilling into her eyes as he took long, deep breaths. "Green Arrow is dead. The Justice League is dead. Don't contact me again."_

 _With that, he climbed back into his car and sped away, leaving Tess calling after him as she saw her hopes vanishing before her eyes._

"So?"

Oliver blinked and looked up to Mia's face. He rubbed a hand over his face. "So this morning I met with a person I hadn't seen in a long time." he recalled. "She wanted my help with something and I refused.

Mia frowned. "Why?"

He sighed and looked into his hands. "Because the last time I did that one of my best friends died because of me."

He looked up to see the surprise on her face. "My past isn't pretty, Mia. That's why I didn't want you to know."

He got on his feet and started for the wet bar again. Mia quickly interposed herself between him and the alcohol vault causing him to sigh.

"I need this, Mia."

She glared at him. "And how do you want to teach me anything if you're drunk?"

"I'm not drunk."

"No," she acquiesced. "But you're tipsy, already."

"I'm not tipsy! I kicked your ass, didn't I?"

She rolled her eyes. "That's not teaching, that's showing off! If you keep going like this you won't be able to stand on your own and the only ass to be kicked will be yours!"

"Fine mom!" he huffed in annoyance. "What do you want me to do? Put on my Pj's and go to bed?"

Mia sighed. "Come on, Oliver. I've seen enough drunk men in my life, I'm sick of them!"

Her words calmed him down. "Okay... I'll just take a shower and go to work. You're welcome to stay here, you know? The guest room can be made for you."

"Okay." she nodded and watched him go.

Once he was gone and she heard the water running, she started to wander around the penthouse. His words earlier had been dark and mysterious enough to have her wanting to know what happened. She soon found herself in his home office and let herself fall on his seat, disappointed.

Until her eyes caught sight of a particular picture sitting on his desk.

And it hit her like a ton of bricks.

* * *

 **July** **9th** **2011\. 07:15 PM UTC-** **6\. Lois's flat, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

Chloe ended the call and dropped her phone on the desk.

"So?"

She turned to see Lois sporting an expectant expression. Chloe pursed her lips and shook her head. Already, her cousin's shoulders deflated.

"Well... maybe he's just busy with something else?"

The blonde scoffed. "If that were true, I think he would have found some time to answer one of the five hundreds calls I made." she ran a hand in her hair and sighed. "First her, then him? I've been spending every hour of every day in the past month trying to get in contact with people who don't want to be contacted. Do you know how frustrating that is?"

Lois nodded. "I see it on your face every time they don't answer. I think I know what it feels like. You know there's still one more person you haven't called yet. Maybe you'll have more luck with him?"

Chloe nodded and looked down at her phone but remained immobile.

"Anyway," her cousin checked her watch. "We're gonna have to get ready now or we're gonna be late."

"Do we really have to go today?" Chloe asked quickly, feeling her stomach roll over.

"I promised him you'd be there." Lois narrowed her eyes. "He said he wanted to talk to you and you need to talk to someone that isn't me for once! You've barely left this condo at all."

"I know."

The brunette softened and reached for the other woman, giving her a one-armed hug. "One of these days you'll have to move on, you know?"

Chloe swallowed soundly. "Can... can we not talk about Oliver, now?"

"You're right." Lois nodded. "Come on, let's go."

* * *

 **July** **9th** **2011\. 08:02 PM UTC-** **6\. Pasco's pub, Granville, Kansas, USA.**

Bruce lifted a glass of red wine up and hovered it under his nose, sniffing its aroma before taking a sip. "This one is softer and leaves a sweet taste in mouth."

"It's a European one, from Croatia." The bartender said. "It's usually well-liked by most of our customers."

"I prefer stronger ones but this one is good and I'm not sure my companions are frequent drinkers so that will do just as well." Bruce agreed. "You'll send a bottle to our table, please?"

The other man nodded and disappeared towards the backroom just as a bell rang quietly behind the billionaire. Bruce smiled and walked up to the two new arrivals.

"Miss Lane, Miss Sullivan." he greeted, shaking their hands. "I'm pleased to see you both here."

Lois smiled back. "It's nice to meet you again, Mr. Wayne." she tightened her arm around her cousin's shoulder and the blonde smiled at him politely but said nothing.

"I've reserved a table at the back, it will be quiet over there." The billionaire explained, guiding them past the relatively empty row of tables towards their own.

"If you'll excuse me, I'll use the bathroom quickly." Chloe excused herself.

"Is she doing all right? I noticed she looked a little pale." Bruce helped Lois sit and settled in front of her, his back to the wall.

"As a matter of fact, no she's not completely okay." the journalist admitted. "She's going through a lot in her life right now. She was... okay, I guess tonight. I mean, I still had to drag her a bit so she could be with us tonight but it got worse when we got past the kiosks and there were still copies of these rags with pictures of Oliver and his-"

Bruce watched as the woman caught herself just before she said something inappropriate, or so he thought. "So that is true, then."

"Yes!" she all but snapped and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Sorry, I'm not mad at you, obviously. Don't you have something to drink? I'm thirsty when I'm angry."

"Don't worry, I understand." Bruce replied, filling a glass of wine for her. "I've known Oliver since he's a child and I really thought he'd been on the right path lately. I wonder what's changed."

"Mmh, that one's good but I need something stronger." Lois exclaimed after tasting her wine. "Especially if I tell you what's wrong with Ollie."

Bruce smirked faintly. "Some cognac, would you like that?"

"Oh you have good taste." she praised.

"Thank you." he replied, pleased as he reported his command to a waiter. "Now... do tell."

* * *

 **July** **9th** **2011\. 08:21 PM UTC-** **6\. Clocktower** **'s penthouse, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

When he got home from his office, the first thing Oliver remarked was that Chloe's shoes weren't by the elevator. It shouldn't surprise him anymore and yet, it still did.

It was then that he noticed that Mia's were gone too. Intrigued, the young man started to look around the penthouse for his protégée, vainly. She left too.

There may have been several reasons as to why she left the penthouse without noticing him and Oliver didn't worry about it as much as it bothered him.

He was disappointed. Once again, he would spend the evening alone with his thoughts and regrets.

His eyes found the wet bar and he licked his lips. At least, he still had one companion, one that would never leave him.

* * *

 **July 9th** **2011\. 08:22 PM UTC-** **6\. Pasco's pub, Granville, Kansas, USA.**

Bruce's forearms formed a bridge on which his pensive head reposed. "I suspected something terrible had happened when I met him that night. He was so shaken he couldn't talk."

"Now you know." Lois's voice was, for one, quiet. "Just promise me not to tell Chloe anything. It's still very fresh for her. Well, it still is for me too, I really liked the kid."

One of his hands slid over the table and covered hers. "I'm very sorry for what happened." he told her in such a way she knew he had lived a similar tragedy. "Had I know, I could have talked to Oliver."

Lois pulled her hand back. "It doesn't excuse what he did to Chloe."

He shook his head. "No, but it does explain why. Oliver never recovered from the loss of his parents and Bart Allen's death sent him down a very familiar hole."

"Yeah well," she grumbled. "Good riddance, he's where he belongs."

"Lois, please." Bruce sighed. "Your cousin got hurt and she didn't deserve it, from the sparse informations I know about her, she's an exceptional woman but I still feel responsible for Oliver and I want to help him."

Lois was about to retort when footsteps approached them. "Sorry for taking so long, I hope you ordered without me." Chloe's voice may have had a lighter tone but it was far from its colored and laughter-filled self of the times when their world was a happier one.

She could smile but even a relative stranger like Bruce noticed her red-rimmed eyes.

He chose to reply in a warm voice and shrug off his own concerns. "I'm very patient." he reassured. "and your cousin is very entertaining."

Chloe chuckled. "She is, that much is true."

"I don't know how to take it." Lois frowned.

They laughed, the three of them. It was faint and it didn't last long but it was something. It was a new beginning.

* * *

 **July** **9th** **2011\. 10:10 PM UTC-** **6\. Lois's street, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

A chrome black Audi parked smoothly in front of a building's entrance. One door was pulled open and two dark heads got out followed by a blond one. The three of them remained beside the car on the sidewalk.

"It was a nice evening, thank you ladies."

"Shouldn't we be thanking you, Bruce?" Lois raised an eyebrow while Chloe rolled her eyes.

"He wants to be a gentleman." the petite blonde said. "Let him be!"

The billionaire smiled. "That was exactly my intention but I'm also very glad to have had the chance of having dinner with you both, you're good company."

"You're not so bad at it either, Mr. Wayne." Lois winked. "Are you staying in town for long?"

"Indefinitely." he nodded. "At least until I manage to catch Oliver and set him straight."

The two women dimmed faintly. "About that," Bruce continued and turned to Chloe. "Your life is tough at the moment but don't let the world dictate your actions. Take your time to find yourself again and one day, no matter how improbable it seems, things will look up again."

Chloe swallowed her emotions with difficulty. "Thank you." she croaked.

"It needed to be said." he smiled indulgently at the blonde. "Have a good night and remember if you need help, you can call me."

He turned to Lois. "That works for you both. Goodbye Lois, I hope we'll meet again soon." he finished, holding her gaze for an instant.

"Goodnight." Lois replied softly.

It wasn't until the women went into the building and let the door slam close that Bruce mounted back into his car and rested his chin on his hands.

"Lovely ladies, sir." his young driver chimed in quietly as he steered the vehicle back into the traffic.

The older man sent a glance his way. "Yes... yes, they are." he said pensively.

Lovely was a good description but he also had other adjectives in mind: lost and vulnerable.

He needed to help them, he just didn't know how.

"Find a quicker route. I need to be somewhere. Fast."

* * *

 **July 9th** **2011\. 10:15 PM UTC-** **6\. Lois's flat, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

The two women decided to take the stairs, giving them more time to clear their minds and assimilate Bruce's words. They were silent for half of the way until Chloe felt she needed to point something out.

"He's interested in you, you know?"

Lois stopped. "What?"

"Don't you think I didn't notice the looks he sent you? He's into you, I tell you."

"Is that... is that your way of telling me you approve of him?"

"He's a nice guy, Lo. A bit older than the norm perhaps but still..."

"I know." the brunette swallowed. "It's just that after everything..."

Chloe turned around. "You still think about Clark."

"Clark left on his own, you snooze, you lose!" she snorted. "No, what I'm saying is that with what you're going through right now I don't want to feel like I'm... like I'm twisting the knife, if you see what I mean."

"Oh." Chloe exclaimed. "Lois, I don't want you to put your life on hold for me. I would never resent you for being happy regardless of what's going on in my life. Never, ever."

Lois teared up. "I love you, cuz!" she tackled her in a crushing hug.

"Lo, don't make me cry." she warned. "And I love you too."

The brunette nodded and started to pull back when some movement caught her attention.

"Hey! Hey you!" she rushed towards a small figure planted in front of their apartment's door. Lois's steps faltered. "Is that... what the hell are you doing here?!" she barked.

"Lois! Calm down, you're going to wake up the neighbors!" Chloe contained her cousin as much as she could even as her own jaw clenched when she recognized the long auburn hair of the young girl.

"What do you want?" she asked, her face impassible.

"You're... you're Chloe, right?" the girl sniffed, her arms wrapped around herself.

Chloe found herself softening when she realized the girl was crying and her body trembled. "Yes, what's going on?"

"It's... Oliver." she whimpered. "He's a hero, right?"


	6. Chapter 6: Face to Face

**Chapter 6: Face to Face**

" _Game on?" - Oliver Queen, Season 9, Episode 5: "Roulette"._

* * *

 **July** **9th** **2011\. 10:33** **PM UTC-** **6\. Lois's flat, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

"Here." Chloe gently put a hot chocolate mug on the small table in front of Mia who wrapped her hands around it.

"Thanks." the young girl whispered before blowing on the beverage and taking a small sip in hope to warm herself up and stop her body from trembling.

The blonde sat on the chair in front of Mia while Lois remained by the kitchen counter, staring at their guest through narrowed eyes. Chloe's cold mask had slipped away the moment she recognized Mia's distress and now, with the teenager drying her tears and drinking hot chocolate on Lois's couch, she found it impossible to remain distant.

She leaned forward a little on her chair. "You ready to talk about it?" she asked quietly.

Mia took a moment to find her voice. "I... I don't even know where to start..."

"Why don't you start from the beginning, I mean that's only logic."

"Lois!" Chloe glared at her cousin before addressing the girl in a softer, almost hesitant manner. "You talked about Oliver... what do you know about him?"

Mia wet her lips. "I'm not sure if I should... I mean I'm not sure if you know..."

"Right!" Lois's dry tone interrupted her. "Just because you took Chloe's spot in his bed doesn't mean you know anything about him that we don't, you little-"

Mia gasped as Chloe looked away, unable to hide her own emotions at the reminder and she was about to sit further away from the source of her troubles when the young girl exclaimed her facts.

"I never did that! Oh god..." she stared wide-eyed at the blonde as if realizing for the first time who she really was. "I swear nothing happened between Oliver and I, I'm not lying, please believe me!"

Chloe couldn't look away from her eyes. These two shining irises staring back at her with such terror at the thought of being called a liar, it affected the older woman in such a way she would have wept for her if not for the hope her words had given her.

"Ollie and you aren't..." she couldn't even finish her question.

Mia shook her head wildly. "No, nothing happened. All we do is sparing in his gym room. He's teaching me how to improve my fighting style. That's all we do, I swear."

"I... I saw the lipstick... on his neck." Chloe swallowed hard.

If it was possible, Mia's eyes widened even more. "That's not mine, I swear! I mean, it even surprised me that he would have done that. All he talks about is getting you back."

"It's not like Chloe doesn't have eyes." Lois intervened coldly. "Don't insult her intelligence, she knows what she saw."

Mia noticed the hostile expression on Lois's face and pursed her lips, turning her attention back on the other woman who was looking at the ground. "When..." she was shy all of a sudden. "When did this happen?"

Chloe's eyes snapped up and they found themselves staring at each other for a moment. "About three months ago." her voice was more vulnerable now, the teenager remarked.

"Three months ago I was at Wallace's." Mia recalled. "That's a fight club downtown. It's sort of underground. Oliver and I met there, we were both fighters on the ring."

"Oh god," Chloe sighed. "That's why he always came back home covered with cuts and bruises."

Mia was hesitant to tell the next part of the story. "There were girls, too." she wet her throat. "The kind that likes to invite themselves in the fighter's showers and -"

Chloe sucked in a deep breath and Mia raised her hands to implore her.

"Let me finish, please!" she begged. "Because I'm pretty sure nothing happened. I mean... I wasn't in the shower with them obviously..." she blushed at the awkwardness of the situation. "I was getting myself ready for my turn on the ring." she continued.

"So I went past the men's lockeroom and showers on my way there and I saw Oliver literally throwing the two girls out, he looked pissed but if their reaction meant anything then I'm sure they didn't get what they wanted from him."

She paused, letting her words sink in. "I was only introduced to him by Wallace a day or two later when he needed to get home and wasn't able to because... he wasn't clean."

Chloe winced, so did Mia. "Now that I know him better, I'm almost certainly sure he didn't let anything happen with these girls in the shower. And he's not interested in anything but talking to you."

There was a long moment of silence between the three women as they each processed that knowledge until Chloe cleared her throat. "Is he still using?"

Mia raised her eyebrows. "The... ? I don't think so. I mean he's always sober when I see him. Well, he still drinks quite a lot. Not enough to be drunk but still... I tried to make him stop, I'm not sure it worked."

"He's feeling guilty." Lois supplied, sounding much less hostile now that she knew who Mia was.

Chloe nodded sadly. "I know."

The teenager opened her mouth but no words came out. It wasn't until a third try that she managed to croak out: "Does he feel guilty because of what happened to Bart?"

The Sullivan-Lane women tensed. Their expressions similarly shocked were focused on her. "How do you know about Bart?" Lois demanded.

"This afternoon... Oliver was just practically yelling at me for no reason and after a moment he apologized and told me it was because today he was reminded of a friend's death for which he's responsible." Mia's breathing picked up all of a sudden and she reached inside her pocket to produce a picture. "It wasn't until I found this that I realized who that friend was."

She handed the picture to Chloe with a shaking hand. A smile escaped the other women even as a couple of tears slid down her cheeks at the sight of the photograph. "I almost forgot this picture." she admitted.

It depicted an innocent-looking Bart Allen raising his arms at his sides to try to convince a suspicious Oliver Queen pointing an accusatory finger at him on the other side of the table.

She could hear Lois moving around the room to end up behind her so she could get a look but Chloe couldn't tear her eyes away from the happiness dripping from the small piece of paper in her hands.

"Oh ,yeah, I remember too." Lois sighed. "It was at Bart's birthday last year, in that restaurant where you had us play waiters for free. I think you were the one to take the picture, right? Just when Ollie had turned his back the kid stole something from his plate and Ollie saw it. Bart could have sworn up and down he hadn't done it, the fact that his mouth was stuffed with food gave him away anyway."

She too, found herself harboring a grin. That night had been one of the happiest of their lives and their memories of it had become bittersweet by now.

"Yes!" Chloe laughed, wiping the tears away. "What a night that was." she sighed again, reminiscing the way things seemed so carefree back then.

It was only a few months after they got rid of Doomsday and Davis. Lex was missing, presumed dead and the future looked bright and peaceful without either of these threats in sight.

Then it all changed, in the blink of an eye. All it took was Lex announcing his comeback and intention to become president and they were down the dark path which took one of their most beloved friend away from them.

"Wait!" Chloe blinked, frowning in concentration. "How did you meet Bart?" she asked the young girl on the couch who had remained quiet for the last five minutes.

Mia sniffed "I haven't told you everything about me..." she admitted. "I'm... I'm... I mean I'm a..." she looked down, unable to look into their faces as she said it. "I'm a sex worker."

"What?"

"But you're too young for that!" Lois squeaked. "I bet you're not even eighteen!"

Mia closed her eyes tightly. "I don't have a choice. My pimp's been taking care of me since my parents abandoned me. I have nowhere else to go so I can't just run. He'd find me, he'd kill me!"

"I'd always thought I'd have to work for Rick for the rest of my life, that I'd never be free to be myself, to live my own life... and then, there was Bart. He came in one day to tell me and the other girls to move from our place because it was radioactive."

Chloe titled her head. "You were in the old hospital?"

"Yeah." Mia nodded. "We didn't know it was dangerous, all we saw was an empty place we could use. Anyway, he saved us that day and he said he could help me get out of Rick's claws and he did. He managed to get him arrested and for the first time of my life I was on my own. It was scary at first but Bart was there for me when I needed him."

"We spent a lot of time together and I started to like him... a lot. I had just decided to finish my studies when he disappeared. I couldn't contact him again and I thought he had left me too... until today when I learned that Bart knew Oliver and was dead."

"Oh god! I'm so sorry!" Chloe rounded the table to sit beside the teenager and press her against her side. Mia accepted the hug and cried against the blonde's shoulder.

Lois crouched in front of her and wrapped her hands around hers, looking visibly affected.

"Oliver..." Mia managed between her sobs. "he's trying to do the same thing Bart did for me... I don't want the same thing to happen to him too..."

"Shh, Oliver won't die, he won't leave any of us." Chloe reassured.

"He's a good person, all he wants is to talk to you."

"I know," Chloe acknowledged. "But he's not ready for that."

"But-"

"I know what you're thinking." the blonde anticipated. "he needs to face his demons before, he needs to realize that nobody but himself is blaming him for Bart's death because he's not at fault."

"Can I... can I ask how he died?"

Chloe pursed her lips and locked her jaw. "He was killed when all he was doing was helping innocent people."

"Oliver was there too? He's a hero, right? One of those in costumes..."

"Yeah," Chloe admitted. "I'm sorry... I can't tell you more right now."

"Chlo," Lois chimed in quietly. "We need to get Ollie back on track now."

She was suddenly more open to the idea of helping Oliver now that she knew her previous allegations had been proved wrong.

Mia raised her head, looking between the two older women. "You guys have a plan?"

Chloe smiled at her and brushed a strand of the girl's hair behind her ear. "Yes but it will take a little while to get the people we need to set everything up."

Mia started to rise hesitantly, feeling that it was soon going to be the end of the conversation.

"In the meantime." Chloe continued with a warm smile. "You are staying with us."

"What?"

"Really?" Lois asked, her tone more amused than disapproving.

"After what you've been through, we're not letting you get back into this Rick's guy's arms, you need to feel safe, you need to rest."

Mia gulped, looking around. "I don't want to feel like you have to-"

"Okay, stop right there honey!" Lois exclaimed sternly, raising on her feet. ""I'm the one paying the bills here and I say you're welcome to stay here for however long you want. Just don't touch the wine and the chocolate, those are mine." she added. "Chloe learned that the hard way."

The blonde chuckled and stood up too, turning to the younger brunette. "So, you okay with that?"

Mia fidgeted with her hands. "I guess... I can give this a try, maybe?"

"Perfect!" Lois perked up, leading Mia towards the corridor. "Now let's get you some blankets and we'll find some space somewhere for you."

Chloe watched on, amused as the teenager visibly wondered how the older woman could go from hating someone to welcome them to her home in such a short time. All she could think was that it took a bit of time to get used to Lois Lane.

* * *

 **July** **10th** **2011\. 11:08** **AM UTC-** **6\. Undisclosed Location.**

A man trotted across the street, gripping his coat tight around himself with his left hand while the second held an umbrella aloft to shield him from the gentle but incessant rain.

His heavy shoes went from puddle of water to another, splashing his dark trousers and urging him forward so as to reach a haven allowing him to escape the weather's dictatorship.

The haven, a long, straight arched tunnel digging through a large building and connecting malls, shops and underground parking lots together.

The man, a tall Caucasian human being whose gray hair wouldn't overshadow his linebacker physique, brought his umbrella down and shook it before pulling it close and holding it upside down from the handle as he patted the top of his head and grunted to himself.

Satisfied, he started to walk further inside with a composed demeanor often common to the men and women who knew how to keep a cool head in the trickiest of situations.

There weren't many people in the tunnel and the ones he met didn't pay much more attention to him other than the occasional nod or the polite "how're you doing?" to which he replied in a voice neither cold nor warm.

It was a silent descent inside the structure's stairs where the only disturbances were the loud bangs of the firewall doors when people went from a level to another. The smell of warm rubber and burnt exhaust gas filled his nostrils and the man huffed them away as he pulled the last door and stepped into the car parking lot.

On his right, an elevator slid its doors open, letting a redhead woman out. He stopped and watched as she went up to him and nodded. He reciprocated the gesture and turned away, hearing her pick up the pace so as to walk by his side.

"Is this the right place?" she asked after a moment.

The man nodded up towards a camera pointing their way. "City's broke. These are just for show."

She seemed to relax a bit. "How did it go?" he demanded.

"I'm sorry to say that he refused, sir, I tried -"

"What did I tell you, agent?" he cut her off rather coldly. "The man's lost too much, he's done and no one can blame him."

"May I ask what he lost?" the agent asked, her voice betraying her frustration.

Her superior watched her by the corner of the eye and remained silent. A gesture which she noticed. "Sir, I gave you his identity, the least you could do is -"

"The least I could do?" he let out a noise between a grunt and a laugh. "We don't owe you anything, Mercer. You owe us, you're the reason Luthor took down the White Queen and forced us to go on the run! I'm only dealing with you because I have to!"

Tess froze. "I... I'm sorry I didn't know you thought this way."

The man stopped too and sighed. "The worst is you're a good agent, Mercer, you just had to add the worst kind of baggage to this squad." he finished, his anger slipping away to reveal his sadness with each word. "Come on." he forgot his emotions quickly. "Cameras may be off but we have to keep our meetings short. We're in hostile territory, don't you forget it."

"Be sure that I won't sir." Tess replied in defeat. "Do you know if we have a HQ, yet? Or even a safe place?"

They reached an empty spot. Upon their arrival, the automatic lights went off and Tess found herself looking at Rick Flagg's face.

"No." he said roughly. "High Command doesn't want to take a decision in a hurry and wants to make sure everything is secure before letting us know. And a safe place? In this country? You're out of your mind agent, all we have are black sites outside and away from any American jurisdiction."

They reached a cobalt blue car that Flagg unlocked. "What now?" Tess asked.

"Now? You find yourself a rabbit hole and sleep in it for the next fifteen years or until new orders make their way to you. Either way. Keep your device on at all time and wait."

Rick pulled the handle and sat behind the wheel. Tess barely managed to suppress a grimace at the thought of being on the run for fifteen years and found the courage to ask one last question.

"Can I contact him again? Maybe I will have more luck the second time."

Flagg pursed his lips. "So long as it doesn't compromise your cover or any communication, you're free to try but... If I were you, I'd leave Queen alone. He's not going to take on the bow again." he paused to let the words sink in. "Anyway... good luck Agent Regina and don't let yourself get caught."

He slammed the door closed and drove away, his tires squealing against the linoleum ground as Tess looked on until he went up into the open and she walked away on her own in the opposite direction.

* * *

 **July** **10th** **2011\. 07:39** **PM UTC-** **6\. Clocktower's penthouse, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

Oliver barged into his penthouse and went for his bedroom, not bothering to turn on the lights.

"Long day at the office?"

He froze, turning around slowly to make out the silhouette of a man casually sitting on his couch. Oliver took a deep breath and switched on the lights.

"How did you get in there?" he demanded.

Bruce smirked and took his time to stand up, wincing faintly in to process. "you system was unlocked. You're getting careless, Oliver."

The blond took a moment to realize he hadn't put his password back in his home security system. He had left it purposely unlocked in case Mia wanted to show up.

His hopes had been in vain. The young girl had been nowhere to be seen. Their last encounter and the revelations he had made about his past had probably scared her away. She wouldn't come back.

"So," Bruce snapped him out of his thoughts. "Are you refusing every guest who want to see you at your office or is this an honor you reserve for me?"

Seeing Oliver's brow furrow in confusion, Bruce continued. "I've been trying to meet with you for the better part of the last three months. Your assistant keeps telling me you're not at your office, you're not answering your phone and up until recently you door was locked tight. Don't insult me now, Oliver, you've been avoiding me. Well maybe not 'me' particularly but you run away from contact."

Oliver's deer in the headlights expression couldn't be concealed. "I've been busy."

"Busy getting lost in your own guilt trip?" Bruce challenged. "You're not the only one who knows what it feels like to lose someone you hold dear."

A cold shiver went through him as he said those words. It took a lot of strength from him to stare into Oliver's eyes for all he saw in them was the reflect of the man he'd once been.

"I'm not sure you know what you're talking about, Bruce." the blond shook his head. "I'm not avoiding you nor anyone else and I sure as hell haven't lost anybody!"

Unmoved by his outburst, Bruce barely raised an eyebrow. "Forgetting our last meeting a year ago where you seemed so unstable you brought a weapon to shoot the elected president of all people!" he countered. "Or the fact that your partner left you and the rest of the world thinks you are still unable to commit to anyone! I bet that doesn't help you with your shareholders, does it?"

Oliver opened his mouth but was cut off. "But never mind all of that. You want to keep lying to yourself? Fine! Do it! We'll talk business in the meantime." His attitude suddenly became more controlled and professional. "My exo-skeleton. You're past the due date by a long mile. I want the prototype delivered in Gotham by Monday or I will sue you."

Both men stared at each other in silence as they digested the meaning of the situation. Bruce hadn't let Oliver say a word and yet, now that the floor was all his, he had nothing to say.

The familiar noise of the elevator coming to life took them both by surprise. They watched as the gate went up, revealing the slender body of an attractive Asiatic woman wrapped in a tight exotic dress.

Bruce's jaw tightened. "I see I'm interrupting something now." he glanced at the younger man in disappointment. "I can't believe you're doing this to Chloe." he went past him coldly. "I thought I had a good grasp of the new Oliver Queen but clearly, I was wrong. But then again, who haven't you disappointed these days?"

He glared at the women who had the decency to look contrite and avoid his gaze as she stepped out of the elevator to let him in. "He's all yours, Miss. Enjoy it. Goodbye Oliver, be sure I won't bother you again."

He pressed the button for the ground floor and turned to watch Oliver again when his eyes caught, through the gate sliding down, the tattoo printed on the woman's nude shoulder.

A dragon.

Bruce's mind went blank as he was encased in the elevator bringing him down. His jaw had dropped open when he realized where he had seen this dragon in the past and suddenly, he was unable to contain the nervous laugh escaping him.

He was nearly in tears and it wasn't until a full minute later that he was able to catch his breath and sigh in relief, his mind still in shock but now clear enough to grasp what was happening.

"Roulette." he muttered under his breath and chuckled.

* * *

A few stories upstairs, time had suspended in the penthouse. A bewildered Oliver still had his eyes cast on the elevator gate as the woman studied him attentively.

"I may say this isn't going to help your reputation, Mister Queen." her confident voice made him blink.

"Okay," he started slowly. "What the hell is going on? Who are you and what are you doing here?!"

Roulette sported a disapproving expression. "You shouldn't get angry Mr. Queen or that will compromise your sleep."

"My sleep?"

She didn't bother explaining, preferring to reach inside her purse and throw a fist of light green powder in his direction.

Oliver flinched and instinctively closed his eyes. "What the...?" He felt the powder exploding around him and a strong pungent smell invaded his nostrils. Soon, his head was spinning and he was unable to remain standing. His eyelids lifted with difficulty, allowing him to see the woman's mysterious grin looking down at him.

"Do not fight it." she said calmly. "Sleep. You will need all your strength when you wake up."


	7. Chapter 7: Wake Up Call

**Chapter 7: Wake Up Call**

 _'You saved my life, Chloe. Both the myth... and the man.' - Oliver Queen, Season 9, Episode 5: "Roulette"._

* * *

 **July** **10th** **2011\. 08:01** **PM UTC-6. Somewhere at the seashore.**

The wind blew its ever-mysterious whistle over the beach. The waves became more aggressive as the sky clouded over in the promise of a storm soon to come.

A dark-skinned man sped up his steps in the direction of a lone cabin built on the most secluded part of the shore. His footsteps were erased into the sand in a matter of seconds. All around him, the wind's chants were covered by the noise of the waves splashing down in such a powerful way it filled his ears to the point nothing else could be heard.

Still, the man continued on his path and didn't lose time reaching into the house. As he walked onto the patio, his attention was grabbed by the lively double doors left unlocked and slapping away onto the wall.

Several windows were broken and let the sad state of the room inside be seen to him. He had a moment of hesitation when his eyes took in the furniture turned upside-down, the teared curtains laying on the ground like a wounded animal and the large gash into the wall by the couch as if someone had been pushed into it.

The man dashed inside to inspect that last clue. He frowned, his hand hovering over the small red puddle on the ground as if he wanted to touch it but, for some reason, couldn't. His other hand ran over his forehead, his eyes wide when he understood why this lost home on the beach was the theater of such desolation.

There was a picture of a young Caucasian man on a small table on his left. He grabbed and studied it. The image of the strong, healthy man with sunshine hair looking back had him sigh. He set it down and went out, taking the time to lock the doors with a key he produced from his pocket before walking past a bright white mailbox on which one could read:

2: CURRY Arthur "AC"

* * *

 **July** **11th** **2011\. 02:05** **PM UTC-6. Watchtower, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

The Watchtower may have been dusted off, its computers turned on for the first time in a year and the entire floor scrubbed clean, the stench would not leave.

It made Chloe feel nauseous at times. Such was the intensity of the smell that she was forced to take a step back and inhale a much needed breath of a cleaner air on the roof five hundred feet above the ground.

She hadn't realized right away why they couldn't get rid of this nuisance until Victor Stone walked into the room and appeared puzzled when she evoked her predicament. The ever-pragmatic cyborg had answered her call the first time around. He hadn't picked up the phone immediately as she imagined he had had to overcome his own struggle when he saw her name flashing on the screen of his cellphone, but in the end, he did what she hoped he would never regret.

Six days later and several plane flights from French Guyana and he was back in Metropolis, ready to help. By then, Chloe and Lois had taken turns getting Watchtower up and running for their next operation while guiding Mia towards a new education to ease her back into civilian life.

Each time, whether it was Lois or Chloe, they came back home complaining about the suffocating atmosphere reigning into the old building. That was the reason Chloe had had such a hard time admitting the simple truth Victor bluntly exposed to them.

There was no smell.

Albeit the polished wood of the French doors and the distinct twinge of aging steel from the structure, the pungent smell of decaying flesh burning their nostrils and making the bile in their throats rise... was in their heads.

Bart Allen may have been buried six feet into the ground downtown Metropolis but he still had his presence in this room. Chloe assumed he always would.

She tried to pry her eyes away from a monitor at her side to focus on the one in front of her, demanding her attention. The task proved to be harder than thought. The image of a sleeping Oliver Queen spread in the white sheets of an hospital bed claimed her attention, leaving her no choice but to stare.

"What we'll put him through is going to be horrible." she had vented to Lois even though she'd been the one who came up with the idea. "It's our only choice but god, do I hate it!"

The task of guiding Oliver back to the light under her direction at best played with the moral line, at worst, utterly crossed it. There would be a point where Oliver would have to face what she knew was his worst nightmare and Chloe worried that even if her plan worked, he would never be able to forgive her for causing him so much pain.

The telltale sound of heels hitting the ground repeatedly brought Chloe's musings to an end. Before the guest could say a word, she knew it was Lois. "Come on Chlo," Lois trotted inside whilst looking at her watch. "Ollie is due to wake up in an hour and there's a lot of traffic on the road, you can't be late now!"

Chloe inhaled a long breath to calm her nerves. "You'll be able to handle everything here?"

"I'll send you a text if there's a problem." Lois replied. "Besides, now that we've got Vic behind the scenes, I'll be able to pass anything that comes up through him. Now, shoo!" she urged Chloe towards the exit.

Chloe breathed deeply to give herself some courage and nodded. "Wish me luck, Lo."

"Good luck!" her cousin immediately replied. "And don't come back until Ollie's himself again!"

Chloe's nervous laugh escaped her resolve and she turned around in the elevator to see Lois giving her a thumbs up right as the door slid close.

 _Here goes nothing_ , she thought.

* * *

 **July** **11th** **2011\. 12:47** **AM UTC-8. Queen Industries's headquarers, Star City, California, USA.**

The headquarters of Queen Industries were in a frenzy as Dayton Miles stormed his way towards the executives' floor. "Are they inside?" he asked to the assistant as he went past her desk. The poor woman only nodded when she recognized the deep scowl on his face.

Dayton urged his pace and burst through the doors of a conference room. Twenty-two heads jerked his way, surprised by his abrupt entrance. "What, in God's name, is going on here?!" he demanded.

"Why wasn't I notified of this meeting?"

A dark-haired man rose from the head of the table. "Mr. Miles, I presume? You will have to excuse me, this meeting is my doing and I can assure you we sent you an invite."

Dayton's eyes narrowed at the intruder. "Matthews, is it? What do you think you are doing here? You have no business being here unless explicitly invited and approved by the chairman of this council, which clearly you have not!"

Regan shook his head. "You will have to forgive me but I wasn't under the impression that this was an official meeting of your Board of Directors."

"and Queen Industries does not allow any meeting to be held in this building without explicit approval from either Oliver Queen or myself." Dayton's face went red in rage. "I was never consulted and I know for a fact Oliver would never let Lex Luthor's monkey in here!"

Luthorcorp's representative man narrowed his eyes at the old executive. "I never thought a man like you would be so undiplomatic, Mr. Miles. You should be careful, Mr. Luthor is not an enemy you want."

"Threats will get you nowhere." Dayton shot back. "Queen Industries does have a very efficient legal department, which I happen to be in charge of."

"Very well, I'm on my way." Regan gathered his files and coat, rounding the table to meet Dayton face to face. "You can invoke any rules you wish, that does not change the fact that I was called here by your directors. The enemy is not at your gates, Mr. Miles, it's already inside. Gentlemen."

Dayton watched, bemused, the other man walk off down the aisle proudly. He breathed loudly when he reached for the interphone. "Ask security to make sure Mr. Matthews doesn't lose himself on the way out, will you?"

He slowly drew the double doors close once again and rested his forearms against them for a moment to regain his composure. "Now, will someone explain what the little masquerade was, exactly?" he seethed at the people sat around the table.

One of them, a rotund man in his fifties spoke up first. "He had a solid offer to make, we had to hear him out and I knew you would never approve."

"So it was you." Dayton glared at him. "I could revoke you immediately for breaching the rules. I mean what the hell, Paul? It was never a secret you were in it for the money! He must have made quite an offer to grab your attention."

"He proposed to buy us out." Paul supplied.

Dayton nearly choked on his tongue. "To buy us...?" he coughed violently. "And you agree? What kind of crap was going through your mind when you received him?"

"Oh come on, Bugger, you can get on your high horses all you want but you can't ignore we've lost 34% of stock value over the last eight months." Paul stood and pointed an angry finger in his direction. "The company is going down the drain and Queen doesn't care a bit, he's out to party like it's the end of the world!"

"Stock? It's the speculation for Christ's sake it'll go up again!" Dayton exploded. "Why should it matter? Barely 10% of the capital is on the market, you want to sell?" A long silence followed during which his face decomposed with each passing second as realization hit him. "You... you want out don't you?"

Looking around the crowd, all he saw were guilty faces. Dayton had known the men for years, he'd never have believed he'd one day be in this situation. His eyes settled on a frail little old man, the eldest in the room, who tiredly leaned on his cane between him and the table.

"Murray?" he whispered, all fight gone from his voice.

"We're living difficult times, Dayton." Murray's fragile voice seemed muffled to everyone's ears and had been for the last ten years. "It calls for drastic measures. I have known similar situations in my years, this is what we did and it worked, it always worked. Sometimes, it can't always go on forever."

Stunned, Dayton sprawled into the nearest chair before his legs gave out. "You? Even, you? Is the situation that bad?" he wondered aloud. "Did I refuse to see the truth? I will readily admit the company isn't in the best of shapes but surely, it's not that bad, is it?"

Upon seeing Murray open his mouth again, Dayton went on. "I know Oliver's not been around much lately and I'll even admit his head wasn't in it but he can't take all the responsibility for the situation." he said, gesturing anxiously with his arms. "Let's not hide the facts, ever since Luthor got elected we suddenly had a lot of trouble continuing business with our partners and finding new ones in the country? Practically impossible!"

"Oh please, now you'll blame our problems on Luthor?" Paul interrupted. "Let's be honest, our clients went away because our damn CEO can't manage his job! Oliver? He's not like his father was."

"How dare you compare Oliver to his father?" Dayton glared at him. "He's the one who got you in, you were never around in Robert's days how could you even make the comparison?"

"Dayton..." Murray's whispery snarl was drowned out by Dayton's anger.

"He gave you his contacts, his money and his help and what did you do to repay him? Nothing! All you ever did was insult him."

"You-"

"Where would you be without him?" Dayton cut him off. "I'll tell you: nowhere! You'd still be the washed up loser that you were seven years ago! With your dying business and a house to be seized because you'd never have been able to pay the mortgage!"

"DAYTON!"

Everyone's heads turned to the doyen who wet his throat loudly. "Paul is not wrong. Oliver has already been away and it hurt us every time. It's one time, too many times. Dayton... please understand that it's not personal, we can't afford to go on like this."

"So you want to sell?"

Murray found his breathing again. "I have another proposal but you won't like it."

Dayton sighed. "Let's hear it."

"Oliver has to step down, officially."

Upon hearing these words, Dayton's eyes went wide, he rose abruptly, weaving his arms around. "You'd have to fire me too before I allow that! Never, you hear me? NEVER!"

He stormed out, ignoring the small crowd that had amassed at the entrance, drawn by the heated exchange in the room. Dayton's heart beat in his ears as he made a bee line for his office and slammed the door behind him.

He flattened a hand on his chest and snatched the phone sitting on his desk, composing a number. He couldn't contain his growl when he hit the voice mail. "Oliver, we have a problem, a big BIG problem, call me back as soon as you get this message."

* * *

 **July** **11th** **2011\. 11:54** **PM UTC-6. Undisclosed Location, USA.**

It was there, in the darkest hour of the night, before the doorstep of 41st on the 2nd street in a small town far away from Metropolis that he found himself again.

He paid no more attention to Sinclair who sneaked away in silence, nor did he to J'onn when the later gave them space. The heavy rain pouring down on his soaked frame had no effect on him, because her smile was all the warmth he needed. Forgotten was the pain in his knees, for all he could focus on was her face.

He brushed her damp hair from her face, dropping a grateful kiss on her forehead as they held on each other and vowed to never let go again. He couldn't speak, his heart beat so fast it could burst as he was overwhelmed by gratefulness.

A day ago, he was resigned, accepting to watch the world around him crumble down. He took on the blame, a burden so heavy it vouched his shoulder and threatened to floor him with each step he made. As if knowing every move he planned was doomed to fail, he stood back and stopped planning, just waiting, waiting for death to release him from his plight.

He'd been waiting to die.

It didn't come as a surprise that she was the one who brought him back from his pit of self-inflicted despair and pain. He'd saved her once, now she gave him the same favor. She brought him back.

Him, Oliver Queen, a man whose light had dimmed, now stood slowly, proudly and embraced his savior in the middle of the street, burying his face in her honey colored hair and closed his eyes when he realized he was home.

Chloe.

It took her help for him to hit the bottom of the pit so he could crawl his way back up. He fell once, now he stood taller and stronger. Both of them knew the future was uncertain and they could sway, stumble even. But they were convinced of one thing: Together, they would never fall again.

* * *

 **July** **11th** **2011\. 11:56** **PM UTC-6. Watchtower, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

Lois sighed, a huge smile breaking out on her face as she watched Oliver and Chloe wrapped around each other in the middle of nowhere through a security camera. "That's better, that's much better." she whispered to herself, her eyes never leaving the screen as a small laugh escaped her.

The radio link crackled around her. "Watchtower, this is Cyborg." Victor said. "I just paid off Roulette and sworn her to secrecy."

"Copy cyborg and I'm watching our favorite couple together once again."

"Looks like a job well done, to me!" It was the first time since his comeback that Victor's voice sounded so light.

She chuckled. "It does to me too, I'm so happy this is over, you have no idea!"

"I say it deserves some celebration," Victor replied. "Manhunter and I can be at Watchtower in ten minutes, I know Arrow and Tower will want to be alone for a while, what about you? Up to join us for a couple of drinks?"

Lois grinned. "I'm exhausted but now I'm _so_ craving a good beer, you're on guys!"

Victor laughed. "Copy, we're on our way, ETA 15min as promised. Oh and by the way, thank you guys, for everything, I had no idea I missed this so much until you called me. Thanks."

"It's a team effort." Lois softened. "We look out for each other, don't we?"

"We do. We do..."

Always.

* * *

 _ **AN: I hesitated at first and finally chose not to detail Oliver's ordeal as it has been done already multiple times with the many Roulette episode fics. Let me know your opinion about that, it can always be fixed at a later date.**_


	8. Chapter 8: Scars

**Chapter 8: Scars**

 _'You know, we all make bad choices, Clark. All we can do is hope to make the right ones in the future, right?' - Oliver Queen, Season 6, Episode 5: "Reunion"._

* * *

 **July** **13th** **2011\. 09:26** **AM UTC-6. Clocktower's penthouse, Metropolis, Kansas, USA.**

Oliver sat back in his stuffed chair and listened to the dial tone ringing against his ear. Almost immediately, the other end picked up. "Dayton, it's me-"

"Call me from the crypted phone." Dayton cut him off.

Oliver drew his eyebrows up. "It's that bad, huh?"

"Kiddo, I'm not joking around, do it now!"

He didn't need to be told twice, Oliver dropped his cellphone onto his desk and pulled a drawer out, unlocking the small vault inside housing a coded phone device. He composed a code and lifted the receiver to his ear.

"There we are." Dayton breathed a sigh of relief.

"What's going on?" Oliver asked, realizing the seriousness of the situation given the secure line they rarely used.

Dayton could be heard taking a long breath. "First... I need to know if I'm talking to the Oliver Queen who promised to take care of his parent's legacy or the one who gave up."

"Dayton..." he swallowed back his guilt and tried to gather the words he needed to convince his surrogate father. "It's me, I'm back. I never should have left, should have made you doubt... I was weak."

An instant of silence filled the conversation. "Forgive me for asking but, why should I believe your word now? We both know this is not the first time you tried to run away from your responsibilities."

Oliver winced. "Not that I blame you, really." Dayton corrected quickly. "You took Bart Allen's death very hard, I hadn't seen you like this since your parents... well-"

"Yes." Oliver cut him off. "You're right, I never intended to come back actually and I hadn't realized how wrong I was to give it all up. I wasted... a year, a full year wallowing while I should have been working on making Lex pay."

"Dayton." he continued. "You remember when I said I could manage being Green Arrow on my own? I was wrong. Some time after that Bart came along and he showed me that being in a team, it was everything I wanted and needed. He showed me what it meant to trust and rely on a partner, someone who'd give their life for you."

"Ollie..."

"I need to pay him back." Oliver kept going on. "Having Lex get what he deserves is just the first step."

Dayton exhaled slowly. "What brought you back?"

A smile broke out on Oliver's face. "Chloe."

"Ah, your elusive girlfriend, I should have known."

Oliver laughed at the adjective. "Me too. I'm not even surprised and I think she's the only one who could have ever pulled it off."

"Remind me again when I'm finally going to meet this femme fatale?" Dayton asked, a mock suspicious tone to his voice.

"She keeps asking the same question." Oliver replied in a voice filled with affection. "I promise, when we visit Star City, your house will be the first stop we make. Good enough?" he teased.

"Well that would be if I knew you'd be coming home in the close future but you seem to have a lot to do in Kansas as of lately."

"I swear you're getting more and more demanding with age!" they laughed. "Before the end of the year." he announced. "Okay?"

"That'll do."

"Good. Now tell me what's going on with my company."

* * *

When Oliver came out of his office, Chloe immediately noticed the strains on his face. She wrapped up her phone call with Lois and reached for his large frame which he had strewn upon the closest seat.

"I take it the news Dayton had to tell weren't good." she said.

Oliver wiped a hand over his face and sighed, remaining silent. Chloe rose on her knees and snuggled to his side, her hand massaging his scalp. "Ollie, what is it?" she asked in concern.

He shrugged, staring ahead unseeingly. "My board wants to overthrow me." he replied bluntly.

"What? Do they even have the power to do that?"

"Greedy old bastards!" Oliver stood abruptly, his hand itching to it something. "I worked my ass off for them! Do they think I wanted to become a businessman? It wasn't ever my dream, I had to assume the position, it wasn't ever my choice!"

He turned around, from the Green Arrow room left open, passing Chloe's concerned face to end up staring right at the different pictures on the adjacent wall. He growled, approaching that last part of the room.

"I put my head down and I took it, without flinching." he continued, in a calmer tone. "I made them three times richer than before I took command and that's how they repay me, now?"

Oliver detached a large picture from the wall and stared at all the smiling faces of the Queen Industries' Board of Director surrounding him. He shook his head and angrily threw the photograph to the other side of the room.

"Fuck them!"

The picture crashed against the tainted windows and tumbled on the floor in a heap of broken glass and hopes.

Two arms wrapped around his abdomen and he felt Chloe's cheek pressing against his back. Oliver relaxed in spite of himself, heaving deep breaths to cool the burning rage inside of his mind.

"We'll find a way." she whispered. "We always do."

Oliver closed his eyes and swallowed painfully. "It's my fault."

"Ollie..."

"It is. Chloe." he turned to face her. "I put in, what, some ten or so hours at the office for the past year. In the end it's my own fault, I made them think I didn't care anymore about the company and they had to take a decision."

Chloe's expressive eyes studied his face as she caressed his cheek to soothe him. "I won't say you are wrong and lie to you but..." she sighed. "You have to realize that you weren't in the state of mind to manage the company. None of us had the heart to think business. I can't even count the number of times I made mistakes these last few months, myself." she finished with a small laugh.

He smiled faintly but couldn't hide the sadness of his eyes. "It goes deeper than that." he said quietly. "It's the image I project. It's always been that way. No matter how hard I try, I always end up making people think I'm just another guy born into wealth and too full of himself to think about using it for something good and useful."

Chloe shook her head but he continued. "And it's not just about the company." he said, getting her attention. "I screwed what we have, too, didn't I?"

Her round eyes couldn't hide her guilt. "I see the uncertainty you have in your eyes sometimes when you look at me. You don't trust me anymore, do you?"

"Ollie." she exclaimed, scandalized. "I do trust you."

"Yeah," he agreed calmly. "But not as much as you used to, we both know it. It's my fault too."

"No."

"I made you think I didn't care about what we have, how many times did I disappoint you?"

"Okay, now listen to me." Chloe cut him off harshly, taking his face with both hands. "I'm having doubts, yes." she admitted guiltily. "But you're not the only one to blame. It's my fault too."

She looked down for a moment and when she looked up, her misty eyes betrayed her guilt. "Ollie even before Bart left us and you broke, I did have doubts. I'm sorry." she bit her lip, willing herself not to cry. "Remember Echevarria framing you for murder? Well... I... you were acting cagey at the beginning and I felt there was something you were not telling me."

He dropped his forehead against her own. "I know, I'm sorry."

She shook her head slowly. "Ollie... I thought... I thought you were seeing someone else."

"What?" he stood back in surprise. "Chloe how could you ever think I would-"

"I'm sorry.." she wiped the tears that escaped her lashes. "It took me a moment to realize that in the end it had nothing to do with you, it was my insecurities." she explained. "Ollie, what we had before that, it was so amazing. I'd never been this happy before in my life and I didn't know until that moment but I think, a part of me was waiting for the other shoe to drop."

He sighed and drew her closer to him. "Honey..."

She sniffled and took a moment to control her emotions. "When you started being secretive, that part of myself had all the momentum it needed to plant the seeds of doubt and I immediately assumed the worst." she let out a shaky breath. "I did the same thing when you came back that night high and you had lipstick on your neck... I just, couldn't handle it."

"It wasn't my best night now, was it?" he said, his voice full of self-reproach. "About that, you have to know what happened that night because I didn't-"

"I know." she smiled through her tears.

"You do?"

She nodded. "Mia told me everything."

Oliver stared at her for an instant, letting his mind process the information. "So you found her, huh?"

"More like she found me, but what matters is that she's in good hands now and she told me the whole story. I know everything and I... well I never stopped watching you, actually." she bounced on her feet in embarrassment.

"I'd be worried if you didn't." he smiled a bit. "Besides, you leaving gave me the kick in the ass I needed to sort the mess I'd become. It wasn't easy at first but I'd Mia to help me."

"I'm just sorry I hid from you for so long, I wasn't ready to face you. It just... it hurt too much." Chloe admitted.

"Okay." Oliver took on a serious face and lifted her chin up to look into her eyes. "We have to squash those insecurities of yours now or it'll kill us."

"I know, we can't have a working relationship if we don't fully trust each other." Chloe agreed. "I just... I just can't help myself.

"I know, babe, I know how much the men in your life hurt you. Even I had a hand in this and I hate it." Oliver replied. "Chlo, if we do this, if we do it for real, we have to give 100% of ourselves to each other and by that I mean full honesty. About everything: past, present, future, what goes on in our heads and all that."

Her eyes shone in a mixture of hope and longing. "It's what I always wanted for as long as I remember."

He kissed her forehead. "And I'm willing to give it to you, honey. I'm in if you're in."

"You know I'm in." she said seriously.

"Then we're on." he smiled. "Now since we're being honest, about your fears of me dicking around on you. Hey." he said when he noticed her embarrassment. "I know you think you're being silly but you need to hear this so it won't happen again. 'Kay?"

"Okay."

He took a deep breath. "I look at other women sometimes, that much is true." he revealed. "But I never did it seriously since we've been together. And when I do look at them, I can't help comparing them to you, even the ones who'd be considered universally super-attractive and 'sex-symbols' and you know what? Each and every time I notice they don't even hold a candle to you."

"It's true. It is true." he insisted upon seeing her dubious expression. "Their bodies might seem 'perfect' but to me they either feel fake or I simply don't feel anything remotely close than I do when I look at you. You... you are real and I know you don't believe but you have a very very compelling effect on me." he moved in close to her as if he wanted to kiss her, she felt herself responding to his words in kinds.

"Their minds?" he chuckled. "Chloe I'm not kidding when I say you're the smartest woman I know, compared to you they're all stupid and mindless. With you, I feel connected, something that's never happened to me before. Their laughs sound like either hyenas cackling around or chickens gloating for attention, nothing like the way you laugh that never fails to make me want to wrap my arms around you and kiss you."

He drew in a breath. "And by the off-chance one of them tries to touch me, I always feel uncomfortable. I don't get that tingling feeling that takes over me whenever _you_ touch me, the one that always make me want more. I want more of you, Chloe, I want all of you."

"Wow." she whispered.

He smiled, somewhat sheepishly. Oliver didn't expect to launch into such a lengthy declaration but he couldn't help feeling slightly proud at the fact that he was able to find the right words to voice his feelings and make her speechless in the process.

And effectively: "Ollie.. I... I don't know what to say. Wow!" she breathed, a hand on her chest and her eyes wide. He just grinned smugly. She found her wits back after a moment and put her hands on his chest. "Oliver I'm not going to say everything that I feel for you before I'd feel like I would be repeating you word for word. I just want you to know that everything you said, I... well... ditto." she smiled in embarrassment.

"Ditto?" he repeated. "So you look at other women too, huh?"

She giggled and swatted at his chest. "Ollie!" she chastised.

He smiled at the sight of her wide grin, glinting green eyes and rosy cheeks. He would never get over how beautiful she looked when she was happy. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly, moaning a bit when he felt her reciprocate the embrace.

"Thank you, Ollie. I needed that."

He rubbed his head against hers a little. "It's just payback for what you did for me." he replied. "We're on the same page now, aren't we?"

She drew back and smiled brightly at him. "We are mister. Now, whatever happens I'll always tell you what's on my mind before I jump to conclusion."

"I promise the same, Chloe." he vowed and without saying anything more, he dipped forward and claimed her lips.

She moaned and let him take possession of her mouth, delighted to realize that even after this long separation the spark between them hadn't gone away. If anything, it was stronger.

She was left breathless and wanting when he drew back. He grinned and kissed her once more before resuming his hug. Oliver sighed contently and relished in the silence that engulfed them, appeasing their souls.

It was Chloe who broke the status quo first. "Ollie?"

"Mmh?"

"Not that I'm complaining about the attention but... shouldn't we be thinking about a way to stop your board from throwing you out?"

"Sidekick," he sighed almost in exasperation. "Turn off that work-mode of yours for a minute and enjoy the moment. Their decision isn't made yet and anyway, we'll find a solution together."

"Together, yeah." she whispered and grinned lazily as she dropped her head back onto his shoulder.

Chloe was starting to fall asleep in his arms when something tugged at Oliver's mind.

"Chloe?"

"yeah?" she whispered drowsily.

"When you said Mia was in good hands, you didn't mean Lois, right?" he asked fearfully.

Her laughter filled the entire penthouse. That was all the answer he needed.

* * *

 **July** **13th** **2011\. 05:41** **PM UTC-6. Undisclosed Location.**

Tess studied the stack of newspapers laid over the coffee table. The piece of furniture would be considered small by most standards and yet, Tess often found herself bumping into it as she tried to squeeze through the modest apartment she was renting under a fake name.

Today, however, the table looked like it had been swallowed by a kiosk and its frail shape now looked bigger under all these papers.

Tess was a woman who rarely let a lack of accommodation stray her away from her goal. She needed to contact Oliver Queen and reason him, by any mean necessary. A successful meeting with him would appease the bitterness of her chain of command towards her.

The reorientation of Checkmate into the Suicide Squad had destabilized the entire organization and Flagg had made it clear to her that everyone's morale was at an all-time low. It wasn't a surprise in itself given the situation as the now-infamous Triple Seven plan was never believed to be acted upon and had simply been created as a mere formality on the off-chance that their feeding-hand decided to let them down.

The government never suspected the existence of plan Triple Seven, even high command had forgotten about it until the Luthor administration came into power. The politicians believed Checkmate to be wholly under their control despite its renowned secrecy and policy to inform the government on a need-to-know basis.

For all intents and purposes, Checkmate was a subsection of the Central Intelligence Agency obeying the president of the United States of America, just like every other one like the CIA itself or the NSA. Everyone had forgotten how special Checkmate really was.

Then came the order, directly from the president Lex Luthor himself, to divulge the entirety of Checkmate's agents' identities. That swayed the thinking heads inside he agency and made them rethink their allegiance towards the government. Yet, they stayed resolute to oppose the president's order despite remaining under his command.

Until Waller was taken out.

The shock of the news had hit them so hard it reminded the only leading officer in action, the Black King, of an old piece of paper stored in a dusty section of their archive rooms. A sheet of paper on which figured three big Seven figures, and it pushed him to do the unthinkable.

 _The Queen is dead, long live the King!_

Checkmate disappeared with Waller, replaced by an organization which obeyed its only commander: the Black King. The Suicide Squad, an army under the thumb of one man, was nothing more but the bare essence of Checkmate and it reminded everyone, both in the government and in the agency, that they never were under the command of any external organ.

Checkmate was the result of a mere cooperation between the White Queen and the government. A cooperation which the politicians took for granted, for its length ran long, and forgot what mattered: They could collaborate with Checkmate but they could never order it anything.

When push came to shove, the organization took on its initial form once again: one of a group of mercenaries which could stand on its own.

That was the history of Checkmate Tess Mercer had learned. Her novelty inside their ranks did not fool her about the men and women she'd joined. Checkmate, and now the Suicide Squad acted in the benefit of their country; but they would never accept authority for, no one inside the organization was a good person.

It would never diminish the achievement that had been Checkmate. During its collaboration with the government, they had known an almost limitless capacity of action all over the world thanks to the near-bottomless pit of funding sent their way.

It was their golden age, and every agent knew they had to thank Amanda Waller for it. Even the Black King had admitted it.

It explained why the transition to the Suicide Squad had been so chaotic. They lost everything during that time and it cost them the lives of two other agents whose support they'd been guaranteed under Checkmate's reign was now gone and with it, their protection vanished.

Scoreboard of the entire operation: Three deaths. One murder and two KIAs.

Tess grimaced. This morbid conclusion was an indirect consequence of her doing. She'd been the catalyst of Checkmate's fall by unknowingly motivating Lex to move heavens and earths in hope to find her.

It was the reason that fueled her determination to bring the Justice League to ally itself with the Suicide Squad. She felt the need to give her hierarchy a way to replace one powerful collaboration with another in an attempt to soothe their resentment of her.

Deep in thought, Tess held aloft the fourth page of Metropolis' Daily Planet. An article depicting the poor financial health of Queen Industries lately, followed by the tabloid reports on page seventeen assuring her Oliver Queen was living through a difficult time in his personal life as his long-time girlfriend Chloe Sullivan had apparently left him after revelations of his infidelity.

Tess shook her head and looked at a picture of the last woman to have experienced Oliver's selfishness.

Chloe Sullivan.

She was the missing link. The one who could bring her to the Justice League, it was the only clear conclusion in Tess's mind.

Her head jerked towards the bright screen of an open laptop on a shelf. She didn't need to stand up, Tess could read the message from her spot on the couch.

From: White Bishop whitebishop .

To: Pawn Regina pawnregina

Subject: New Orders

Date: Tue, 13 Jul 2011 05:43:18 +1100

User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux i686; rv:31.0) Gecko/20100101 Mutt/31.4.0

-BEGIN PGP MESSAGE-

Charset: utf-8

Version: GnuPG v1

 **Forget the Archer. Follow new instructions with immediate effect:**

 **ME. c100, 0430 on 08/10 for air pick up HVN, B12.**

 **Report back ASAP.**

-END PGP MESSAGE-

Tess made quick work to decode the message, having received a full class on Checkmate's communication procedures when she joined them.

 _ME_ was short for 'Meeting'. _c100_ meant the meeting could not be skipped under any circumstance as it was diminutive for _coefficient 100_ : the highest level of order. Then came the time and date of her pick up at HVN, New Haven's Airport in the Connecticut at gate B12.

It all but shattered her hopes to make contact with Chloe, and possibly the Justice League any time soon. _Ah well,_ she thought bitterly. _So long..._

An order was an order but she did not forget her self-imposed mission. These words remained in her mind even as she prepared herself to leave.


	9. Chapter 9: Under The Curtain

**Chapter 9: Under The Curtain**

 _'I'm not really a team player.' - Dinah Lance, Season 7, Episode 11: "Siren"._

* * *

 **August** **4th** **2011\. 04:38** **PM UTC** **+1. Dinah Lance's apartment, Limerick, Munster Province, Ireland (Éire).**

"Hi, Dinah."

The surprise in Dinah's eyes spoke aloud of the small blonde's capacity to catch people on the back foot. She stood some thirty feet ahead of Dinah, her hair glowing from sunlight's rays coming through the window.

"And I thought the hundreds of messages on my voicemail I left unanswered were proof enough that I wanted to be left alone." Dinah's voice was filled with annoyance as she moved into her home, dropped her purse onto a nearby chair and pulled off her wig. "Hi Chloe, by the way. You came to see me? I'm doing fine, leave now."

Chloe smiled but didn't move. "Our team has been a bunch of loners working together from the beginning but you always were the most withdrawn of us. That's why I gave up on trying to call you." she said patiently.

Dinah huffed, unscrewing the cap of a water bottle. "Shocker." she snarked. "So that's why you came here? To psychoanalyze me? Thanks Doc, I'll pass."

"I came here," A harder tone replaced Chloe's soft one. Watchtower was doing the talking. "because things have changed. I think you'll be more open to the idea if you heard what I have to say."

Being the taller of the pair, Dinah approached her guest slowly, her heels clicking loudly against the wood. "Oliver pulled his head out of his ass, yet?" she asked in a mixture of quiet haughtiness. "It must have hurt you to see him start fucking other women and brag about it in the trash pages."

 _Trying to get a reaction out of me_ , Chloe thought, _let's see how you react if I turn the tables on you..._ "Why don't you ask him yourself?" she turned around, feeling herself smug as she watched a tall frame move up beside her into the light.

"Dinah," Oliver nodded at her almost in a mocking gesture. "It's always a pleasure to hear how high your opinion of me really is." he said, crossing his arms over his chest.

Black Canary looked down and shook her head. "I shouldn't be surprised, really."

"No, you shouldn't." Oliver confirmed. "We didn't come alone, by the way."

Dinah twirled around, unable to school her expression as her wide eyes took in two more figures coming up from the entrance. "Hello, Miss Lance." J'onn J'onzz greeted, his usual warm grin replaced with a neutral face.

At his side, Victor Stone raised an eyebrow in her direction. "You're losing your touch, Di." he noted. "But I see the bitch in you is still there, that's good. I'd be worried if it wasn't." Unlike the last times before the team shattered, there was no humor in his words.

Surrounded by this unwelcome attention, Dinah Lance didn't know where to turn as she watched each of their faces. Her disarmament, soon turned into veiled anger. "I bet you put in so much work into that entrance, you must be proud of yourselves." she snapped. "Now what are you here for? And spare me the bullshit!"

Chloe shared a glance with Oliver and grinned coldly at the woman in front of her. "I told you you had to hear me out but you didn't listen."

"What do you think I'm doing now?"

"You're listening now because you have no other choice, it doesn't mean your head's cool enough to make sense of my words." Chloe continued.

"Like I said: Spare me the bullshit." Dinah replied icily. "I'll be the judge of what I can make sense of, or not."

Chloe shared looks with all the men in the room, the mood suddenly turning dull. "Now, princess!" Dinah pressed.

The shorter blonde narrowed her eyes and started talking. "We've wasted too much time by spreading away from each other. We let Lex act without any opposition and we know he's preparing something else. We need to gather up and act, now. We'll never be able to do this if we're all on our own, we need to be together. This is why we're here today." she explained in clipped tones.

The Black Canary eyed Chloe for a second, then burst laughing, pushing past them to sit down on her couch and regain control of her breathing. "This... That's why you came here?" she wiped a her eyes. "To tell me the obvious? Jesus you're even more full of yourselves than I remembered."

"Excuse me then, but if it was so obvious to you then why aren't you doing anything about it?"

She looked over to an irritated Oliver. "I'm doing something, here. Alone."

"You're not gonna tell me you're fighting Lex on your own from Ireland now, are you?"

Dinah's eyes turned to slits. "Lex's not the only problem in this world."

There was a snort, they all watched Oliver walk away then moving back and forth in an attempt to control himself. "He's the biggest threat there is right now! For all of us!" he exploded. "How can you even say he's nothing we should worry about?"

"That's not what I said."

"It was implied."

"Oh for Christ's sake!" Dinah raged. "What's holding you back from taking on Lex by yourselves? Do you need me that much? My answer's no, I'm not going to play cop and thief again with a bunch of reckless amateurs who let a kid die for nothing!"

Everyone tensed. One could slice through the dismal atmosphere in the room when silence followed for a long, very long moment as they all watched each other warily.

"What happened to you?" Chloe broke the stare down session with a soft inquiry. She furrowed her brows in wonder. "I used to consider you a friend, now all I see is you being aggressive and refusing even to listen to us. Why? Why is that, Dinah?"

The only other woman in the room crossed her arms over her chest. "Things have changed."

"So?" Victor snapped, getting their attention. "We lost one of our own, to me that's one more reason to stick it to Luthor. We're doing the right thing here, you know it and Bart knew it too! Do you think that's what he would want? To see us alone and miserable, fighting petty criminals while the real threat is at the top?"

"The answer is no." she said with finality. "Get out now. All of you."

The small group watched her retreat deeper into her apartment. As J'onn started to head back out Victor huffed and waved a furious in her direction. "At least we know who you really are now: a coward." he spat out and started to leave.

"Your plans will get you killed." Dinah's voice echoed through the room. "What good would it do to the world if we all died? I'm pretty sure AC agrees with me too or he would be here."

"AC is missing!" Victor shouted.

For the first time since their reunion, Dinah's mask of indifference slipped, letting way to emotions they knew she almost never let through. "Missing?" she asked in a quiet tone.

"He was captured." Chloe elaborated. "By whom? We've got an idea but of course... no proof. We've been looking for him ever since."

Dinah looked down, the shadows hiding her face. "How long?"

Oliver hesitated for a moment. "At least four months."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"You really have some nerves." Victor showed his unusual anger once again by his outburst. "You left him out to dry, remember? Oh yes – I know about that, we talked a lot, Dinah." He then glanced over to the rest of his friends. "Whatever, I'm heading out now. I'll be waiting at the airport."

Chloe nodded, believing his departure would relieve the mood a little given his outburst Victor was pretty antagonistic with Dinah. The cyborg was never one to get wound up usually. Chloe understood how his best friend's – AC – disappearance weighed on him and his interactions with Dinah were proof of that.

She felt Oliver's hand on her back and looked up at him. "I'm leaving too, I've had enough of this." he said then continued in a quieter tone. "You coming?"

Chloe nodded. "Give me a minute?"

"'Kay." he smiled a little and went for the exit. "Goodbye, Dinah." he said without looking back. "Have fun with your self and regrets."

The woman in question looked up after him, her eyes shining in the dark. To Chloe it was obvious she didn't have the strength to put on a strong face anymore. It wasn't going to make the small blonde any softer though. "We roll in an hour." she announced in an authoritative voice. "If you ever change your mind, meet us at Hangar 13 but don't be late because we're leaving with or without you and I won't stop them if you show up late."

She turned around after her tirade, smiled on the way at J'onn's silent presence before closing the door behind her. The Martian watched attentively Dinah as she longed after Chloe's retreating back for a long moment until she noticed him.

Her face turned hard. "What?" she snapped.

He grinned, unphased. "It's okay." he said warmly.

"What's okay?" she growled.

"To be afraid of failure." he continued pleasantly then nodded courteously. "See you in an hour."

She stared after him as he left then sighed and went to her bedroom, drawing a small case and filling it with her clothes.

* * *

 **August** **4th** **2011\. 10:28** **AM UTC-6. Fort Carson, Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA.**

Two soldiers standing guard of a government controlled building saluted the arrival of the president as he walked up the long stairs up to the entrance. Lex Luthor reciprocated the gesture and moved past the door held open by an intendant.

He nodded at the man and moved through the short corridor, his overcoat floating behind him like a cape. "Are they all here?"

"Yes, Mr. President." he heard the voice trailing behind him.

"Good." he said, putting a gloved hand on the handle of the mat double doors. "Thank you. We'll call you if we need anything." he added before pulling the door open and getting inside.

A healthy hubbub quietened as eleven faces greeted him. Lex sighed and pulled his tie off, pulling open two buttons at the top of his shirt. He waved down a high-ranked military officer as the man stood upon his arrival.

"Sit down, General." Lex ordered. "We'll skip through the pleasantries, I was held up visiting the Academy and since we're all on a tight schedule we'll go straight to business." he plopped down on his seat and grinned.

"Thank you for joining me here, my friends." he opened his arms in a welcoming gesture. "I expect this to be the first meeting of a long series. Unfortunately we have quite some work to do but I have no doubt we'll be successful."

On the other end of the table, a middle-aged woman addressed him. "Mr. President, may I ask if we'll be allowed to send in representatives in our place for future meetings?" she asked. "As you expressed, we all have very tight schedules and..."

Lex raised a hand. "Let me stop you, right there, Hillary." he made sure to look over everyone else in the room. "Given the possible legal protestations over the matters we'll discuss here, I demand that you be present here yourself, or not at all. This is a matter of security, our security. I hope you understand."

She smiled indulgently. "Very well, sir."

"Good!" he glanced at the woman on his right. "Let's start by an introduction of the project. Condoleezza, will you?"

Condoleezza Reiser nodded and put on her glasses, skimming over her documents. "Since everyone in this room knows about the essence of the project, I will be succinct," she pointed at the military officer who had risen when the president entered the room. "and since I know General Wilson has some critical report to make to this commission, I will not expand on this introduction more than necessary."

Lex raised an eyebrow at the general before turning his attention back to Reiser. "As Secretary of Defense, I was given full authority on the project by president Luthor. I will be the one to act as a middle-woman between this commission and the president whenever he's not here with us. Although I understand this might be a rare occurrence, since the president is personally involved in this project?" she turned to Lex.

He nodded. "Correct."

She did the same and taped her pen on the table. "Let's proceed with a quick summary of the situation: we have eight facilities across the country including one overseas – again, I will refer to General Wilson for a more complete report on these facilities and their equipments – and no major incident happened since president Luthor launched the project six months ago –"

"You said _major_ incidents." An aging man interrupted. "Was there anything minor?"

Reiser looked over her notes and smiled – somewhat embarrassed. "Well Senator, there have been only two minor incident reported back to us and the first one was a cargo truck breaking down en route to a facility in South Carolina and the convoy remained stranded on the sideways for three hours before they were able to fix the issue."

"This isn't what I would call a minor incident," the Senator cut her off again, a note of apprehension in his voice. "This is a serious issue, what would have happened had any civilian – or even the police, become curious? And was the truck loaded?"

At his side, General Wilson took in a breath before Reiser could reply. "I reassure you then, Senator Prentice." his deep timber of voice echoed through the room. "The problem on the truck itself was a very rare issue which is not expected to happen again – but in any case it does, we do have a working pulling-vehicle on stand-by every time a truck leaves a facility."

"And the load?" Prentice asked.

Wilson glanced at Reiser and another man seated beside Prentice before replying. "The conditions in the trunk were less than ideal and I'm afraid we lost 10% of the cargo we were moving."

"10% is about the turn over we do have whenever a new shipment arrives at a facility anyway." the man on Prentice's left reacted quickly. "I will tell you we didn't lose anything significant."

Prentice agreed and wiped at his brow. "What was the second incident?" Lex asked.

"Hum," Reiser turned her page. "Oh it's very small compared to the first one, it was a shortage of food for the employees of a facility which lasted for four days. They had to take into the stock reserved for the inmates, they weren't pleased with it as this food is not processed for human needs – it comes from the surplus of different farms in the country. The matter was resolved fairly rapidly and we now have a deeper look on the food management."

"Keep up with it." Lex commented. "We cannot afford a strike or an employee talking."

Reiser nodded. "Last point, we have no current legal laws to manage this project and it will become an issue after some time. We really have to work on that point in priority during the first meetings."

"Thankfully we have our senators and congressmen here to help us." Lex added with a smile. "The elaboration of a law is trivial, what matters is how the public will see it when it gets through the institutions."

"That's quite a serious matter indeed." A congressman said. "Given how sensible this project is, this law, or laws could make or break you, Mr. President. A distraction would be preferable."

"I share the same idea." Lex agreed. "We've been working on it with General Wilson and Miss Reiser. I have high hopes of its success."

The congressman nodded and a short silence followed. "Any question?" Lex raised his voice. "No? General Wilson, the floor's yours!"

"Before I start, Mr. President." The officer readjusted his eye-patch before continuing. "I'd like to draw your attention on an impending issue that will soon concern each facility; we are starting to overshoot their storage capacities and if we keep on walking down that road, I'm afraid we are going to lose a whole bunch of specimens. I'm sure Professor Varta will confirm my words."

"Indeed, I do." Varta spoke up besides Prentice. "The recruiting teams are bringing in so much specimen we noticed our installations were not fit for such a high rate, Dr. Vuuren himself – told me he was having the same issue at his facility and there are signs it is happening for the other ones too."

Lex hunched forward. "What do you suggest?"

"Tighter selection."

"Hold on," Senator Ray interrupted. "Wouldn't such a thing undermine the whole project? Our goal is to pick out the most interesting subjects, the more, the better, isn't it?"

"To be completely honest, Ma'am," Varta continued. "When a new cargo arrives at a facility, the first selection process is rather lose and yet we still eliminate about 10% as we said earlier, of the mass. A large part of the ones left will either be too sick or too underdeveloped to be worthwhile injecting into the program. I reckon these individuals represent another 35-40%, that means we shave off between 45 to 50 per cent of each arrival in their first two weeks at the facility."

"Go on," Reiser encouraged.

He cleared his throat. "What I mean is that about only a quarter, sometimes even a eighth of a new shipment is worth experimenting on. As of now we are exploiting the full half of them but I believe we could be much more productive if we selected only the best specimen in the pack. It should resolve our storage issue the same way."

"Two birds with one stone," Lex muttered. "That sounds interesting, professor. Do we have time to think on it and give you our decision later?"

Varta nodded as he cleaned off his glasses with a handkerchief.

"Professor," Prentice turned to his right. "You keep talking about this 'selection process', what happens to the individuals who are not selected?"

"Oh," Varta put on his glasses again. "I believe General Wilson will be more informed about that matter but –"

"Yes, I will take over if it doesn't bother you." Wilson offered. "Senator, the mutants that were not selected are eventually eliminated but we do keep the strongest of them around for the maintenance of the facilities. These are fed, bed and taken care of until they're replaced then they're eliminated too."

Prentice squinted at him. "What do you mean, _eliminated_? I hope this is all in respect to our ethics, I do not wish to be associated with any slaughters."

"I back this question, General." Lex added, narrowing his eyes in curiosity.

Wilson flattened his hands on the table. "I understand your concerns but they're unnecessary, really. Obviously, the subjects are killed, we can not let them mix in with the population. That much we agree on, don't we?"

Everyone nodded.

"The elimination process is nothing more than euthanasia practiced in respect to the mutant's dignity. They're injected with a fast effective poison after an anesthesia, they do not suffer and most of them do not even know what is happening."

"What do you do with the bodies?" Lex asked.

"They're cremated." Wilson answered. "Obviously, we cannot bury them or we soon would run out of space. The bodies are cremated and the ashes are spread over the soil of the closest forests. It does have a nice consequence because it makes the soil more fertile and we see the vegetation grow faster in these forests. It makes a natural barrier."

There was a knock on the door. The head of the intendant poked into the room. "Excuse me, General Wilson? There's a call for you."

"Excuse me, gentlemen, ladies." Wilson rose and went to take the call. He mustn't have been gone for 30 seconds that he reappeared by the entrance, the phone still in his hand. "Mr. President? Miss Reiser? I'm sorry to everyone else but I need to talk to you both now."

"What is going on?" Prentice asked, ruffled.

"National security." Wilson replied and disappeared again.

Lex shrugged. "Forgive us for a moment, will you?"

He and Reiser went up to meet the General. "Close the door, please."

Wilson shook his head slowly. "We have a situation." he declared. "Or rather, had."

"What is it?" Lex demanded.

"Site E was attacked."

"Oh my god." Reiser muttered. "How is this even possible? There had to be leaks!"

Lex narrowed his eyes. "Who?"

"The Suicide Squad, they think." Wilson replied. "Security held them off, most of them are dead but they think one of two of them got away. Should I order to go after them?"

"No!" Lex said. "We cannot draw anymore attention to the facility."

"Lex, these agents will be able to report back to the Black King if we don't stop them." Reiser worried.

"The Suicide Squad, hm?" Lex asked. "Leave them be, how many agents had they sent?"

"Security reported they executed thirty-seven of them, all of the bodies have been retrieved." Wilson explained, pressing the phone against his chest.

"Any casualties on our side?"

"None, sir." Wilson said. "They couldn't find a way past the second gate, our men sandwiched them."

Lex smirked and looked at Reiser. "Quite a fortress we have there, thank god for it."

She smiled. "What should I tell them, sir?" Wilson asked.

"Lock everything up, no more shipments for three days and wait for further instructions." Lex hesitated. "And... ask them if there was any redhead female in the bodies."

If he was surprised, the General didn't show it. He repeated the orders into the phone and listened. "No female, sir." he said after ending the call.

Lex heaved a sigh of relief. "Give me that phone and go back inside. Oh and... not a word to the others. No need to scare them off for nothing."

Wilson did as ordered. "Who are you calling?" Reiser asked.

He sent her a glance and brought the phone to his ear. "Thompson." he said.

"Do you really want to do this now?"

"We might not have a better occasion and given what just happened, let's not take any risks." Lex appeased her. "Go back inside, Condoleezza, I'll be quick."

"Keep me posted." she simply said and went away.

Lex searched through his pocket and dug out two pills which he proceeded to dry-swallow as he listened to the dial-up.

The line picked up. "John? This is the president, howdy?" he asked cheerfully. "Listen, do you remember the little operation I talked to you about? Yes? Well I need it to happen now." he listened to Thompson. "Forget about blow-backs, there won't be any. I need this to happen by the end of the month. Report back to me when it's done. Yes... thank you."

He hung up and breathed deeply, a smile on his face. When Lex turned around to rejoin the room, he found himself humming a tune he'd thought about a lot over the years.

 _Look out, archer, look out archer, your life is on the line_

 _Look out archer, look out archer, tomorrow you'll be mine_

* * *

 **August** **4th** **2011\. 11:10** **AM UTC-6. Somewhere near Facility 7, USA.**

The mud mixed in with the blood and she gasped, wiggling through the bushes and biting her tongue as hard as she could to remain quiet. The rain was pouring, she was drenched and her ears couldn't pick up any sound but her own breathing and the water falling from the sky.

Tess knew she was crying. The warm wetness on her cheeks had nothing to do with the rain. An entire squad... wiped out in barely five minutes. _What went wrong?_ She asked herself again as she used her last strengths to heave herself forward.

Her wound itched and burned. She couldn't even bring herself to look down at it and see how profusely the blood was seeping from her body. She focused on getting herself as far away as possible from the scene of the massacre, holstering herself uphill through the woods.

It could have been hours, or just minutes later when she reached the top of the hill and started wiggling down the other side. Her front scraped against the pins and needles of the vegetation and she let out a pained shout.

Tess cried harder. Her foot was caught in the brambles and her strengths were fading fast. In a last moment of lucidity she turned around on the ground and looked up. Her uniform was covered in blood.

She could have bet half of it wasn't even hers. It didn't matter anymore. Patting her pocket, her fingers encountered a small device. Her eyelids became too heavy to keep up and she pressed the button even as the world went darker and darker around her.

It could have been hallucinations, but she swore she heard footsteps and, just before she passed out, she heard a voice. _"Somebody screwed up. Want my opinion? In the end we ain't worth a damn!"_

Then nothing.


	10. Chapter 10: Pressure

**Chapter 10: Pressure**

 _'I'm sorry. For everything I've done that's destroyed your trust.' - Tess Mercer, Season 9, Episode 16: "Checkmate"._

* * *

 **August** **29th** **2011\. 08:46** **AM UTC-6. Healdton Municipal Hospital, Healdton, Oklahoma,** **USA.**

Chloe couldn't bring herself to move. Looking in from the outside, there was nothing appealing about getting into this hospital bedroom deep in Oklahoma's county. The woman laying on the bed was almost as pale as the walls and if it weren't for her loud breathing, Chloe wouldn't have known she was alive.

"Come in," the weak voice said between two puffs of breaths.

Chloe sighed and obliged, she moved inside with a tentative footing until she reached the woman's bedside. "Jesus," she exclaimed softly. "What happened to you, Tess?"

Tess opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling. "Lex." she said after a moment.

The two women were silent, an eerie feel dabbing into the room. Chloe almost jumped in surprise when Tess spoke again. "Why isn't Oliver here?"

"He's on his way." Chloe told her, a hand on her chest. "He took the backdoor for more discretion."

Tess closed her eyes and nodded. "How is he?"

"Fine, he's fine." Chloe replied. "Much better than he used to be but I wouldn't say he's back to 100% percent, I don't think any of us are, actually."

"What happened..."

Her question wasn't complete but Chloe understood the meaning. "One of us died, over a year ago. Lex shot him. It was hard for all of us but Oliver took it the worst. He's always been closest to Bart."

"He said... the League was dead."

Chloe's brow furrowed. "Who?"

"Oliver."

"Oh, when you tried to meet him the last time?" At Tess's nod, Chloe continued. "We're all back again and working together now." _So far, at least..._

Something cold found her hand, making Chloe shiver. She looked down to see Tess's hand wrapped around hers. The redhead groaned. "Top drawer."

Chloe looked over at the bedside table. "This one?" she asked.

She retrieved a yellow manila folder from the table. "It's... everything you need to know about what Lex's doing... the people I work for and..." Tess coughed roughly. "and a few more things..."

The frontpage caught Chloe's attention, probably more than it should have. Skimming over it, the young woman didn't waste any time grasping the enormity this document signed by Lionel Luthor represented.

Her wide eyes flew to Tess's still form. "Tess what is th-"

There was a commotion in the hallway followed by an immediate silence which interrupted her. Chloe turned around, Oliver's tall frame standing in the doorway filled her vision. He looked like he had seen a ghost. She supposed it had been her own reaction five minutes ago.

"My god, Tess." Oliver hurried to her side and took her hand in his. "What the hell happened?"

This time there was a smile on the woman's face, a bitter one. "Remember when I said I was working for a team whose goal was to take down Lex?" he nodded. "We tried... It was a massacre, only two of us got out alive." she wet her throat, talking took a lot of effort from her.

Chloe realized even as she folded the piece of paper and hid it in her pocket, that Tess was being much more talkative to Oliver than she'd been to her. History could not be erased, she understood.

"I was lucky, the other survivor found... me so quickly." Tess continued. "Wouldn't be here without him."

"You'll be okay, right?" Oliver asked softly.

She breathed and smiled. "I should live." she rasped. "It will just take a long time."

Oliver looked away for a moment. "Get better soon, Mercy. I still need you around to kick my ass from time to time." he joked.

Her laugh morphed into a fit of coughs. Chloe handed her a glass of water and helped her drink.

"Thanks." Tess whispered. "Now listen, I'll tell you everything I know. You have to hear me out... it concerns both of you and your League." Tess saw she had the attention of her guests so she took a deep breath and started talking.

Three quarters of an hour went by before the door creaked open again. The blond couple came out, looking livid. They started down the hallway until Chloe broke into her companion's thoughts. "Maybe we both should take the back door."

Oliver nodded, his mind still far away. "Yeah," he agreed. "I'm not letting you out of my sight. Not now."

It was a feeling she understood and her senses decided he was right. They could never be too careful, it was a lesson they learned the hard way.

Their hands clasped together, they thrived in silence through the unused corridors leading to an emergency exit. As they prepared to climb into the car that would bring them back to Metropolis, Oliver stopped and looked at her.

"It's all gonna change now." he realized.

Chloe shook her head. "It's already changed." she corrected him. "We just hadn't accepted it until now."

* * *

 **August** **29th** **2011\. 03:58** **PM UTC-6. Clocktower's penthouse, Metropolis, Kansas,** **USA.**

When they arrived at the Clockower, the penthouse lacked the attractive ruckus it transpired during happier times. It might have been just as well, they knew. The League was back on again but it seem that it lacked its spirit and the news Chloe and Oliver were bringing would not help them improve the mood.

As the doors slid open, their three friends sat at different points in the room, all separated from each other by quite a margin, all silent and looking at them expectantly. J'onn was the first one to react. His face lost its neutral expression and a mask of sadness replaced it. He rose and started towards his bedroom.

"I will start packing." he said without any explanation.

Chloe and Oliver nodded and approached Victor and Dinah who looked equally confused. "What's going on now?" she asked.

The blond couple glanced at each other. "Short version," Oliver started. "Lex is on again with 33.1 on a much bigger scale and we all are on his list of people to grab – or kill in my case, I suppose."

Victor sighed and dropped his head into his lap. "The worst thing is, I'm not even surprised. Now that he knows all of us and that we work together he will want to take us down, that makes sense."

"It also means we're not safe here." Chloe added. "We have to go in hiding. Together." she said while sending a meaningful glance to Dinah.

"Come on at least Mercer told you how to contact her people, right?" the Black Canary pressed.

Oliver nodded. "She did. They're underground too, something about their leader being shot forced them to cut their ties with the government. We have to do the same now."

"What about Q.I.?" Victor asked. "Your position's already under threat, if you leave now they'll throw you out."

"They'll do just that, even if I stay." Oliver replied. "It doesn't matter, us leaving will not change my plans on Q.I., it will simply take a bit longer. I'm not giving up on the company, guys."

Queen Industries was the only viable source to finance the League. Even Oliver's personal wealth could not bear the team's expenses for more than two years. Such was the importance of technology and Watchtower for their quest of justice.

"So we're leaving." Dinah concluded. "Now?"

"Yeah." Chloe said. "The sooner, the better. You never know when Lex is going to strike."

"Alright."

The four of them followed the same path J'onn took just minutes earlier. "Let's say everyone's got to be ready in an hour." Oliver declared.

"Where are we going, by the way?"

"Not far. At least for now." Chloe said. "We'll use Watchtower, as far as we know it's secure but we'll have to start considering other options too."

"Okay, let's start packing."

* * *

Chloe blinked and pulled away from the case she was preparing, slowly standing up to feel Oliver's frame against her back and soft materials against her fingertips. She looked down at the deep green gown he held against her.

"You forgot that one." he whispered in her ear.

"Ollie..."

She could feel his smile against her cheek. "I had something planned for us tonight." he said. "Looks like we'll have to skip it too but I'm not giving up. Even if we're going to be cooped up at Watchtower I'll find a way to get some privacy so I can show you how much you mean to me."

"It's beautiful, Ollie." she murmured, turning in his arms. "You didn't have to do this."

"It's not a five thousand dollar dress, if you're talking price. I know you wouldn't have liked that." he took her hands in his. "I just wanted to make up for the time lost, I wanted to wine and dine you so I could tell you how much I've been thinking about this, about us. I want you to know I'm serious, I'm committed to you."

She could feel her eyes filling up with tears. "And imagine how I could make love to you until you're too exhausted to even move at all, pretty nice way to end a date, I think." he smirked his usual, arrogant confidence on his face.

She laughed. "Sounds like a date worth remembering." she whispered. "I would have loved that."

Oliver shook his head at her deception. "I'll give you that – and more. Lex did enough damage as it is, we won't let him affect what we have."

"Never." she nodded and inched closer to him.

"You know," he started in a quiet, reminiscent voice. "Before... everything, all this madness happened with Lex and Rafe, we'd already been together for more than a year."

"A year and three months, yeah." she grinned. "My longest relationship ever."

"Me too." he reciprocated. "By a long mile at that. That's what keeps bugging me. You're the only woman who's ever truly mattered to me. I mean hell – I came back through time for you, it says it all. We did everything together, we lived together, we worked together, we had so much fun with each other... Then why did we never talk about the future? With us, it's always been the present time that mattered but we never talked about what we could plan. Why is that, Chloe?"

Her eyes traveled through every crevice of his face. "You don't remember? What we talked about in the hospital? You were pretty out of it." she remembered. "Ollie... after Doomsday happened, I think we both realized our lifestyles weren't exactly suited for a long and normal life. We knew it could be over in a second. We never clearly said it out loud but I think we both agreed that we had to live life to the fullest and take it as it came because you never know when it was gonna end."

"Taking it one day at a time?" his eyes widened. "I remember now."

"That's why." she smiled and rested her head against him.

"Chloe."

"Mmh?"

"I know the circumstances haven't changed but..." his heart started beating faster. "I have. I don't think I could be satisfied with that now."

She looked into his face. "You want to change it?"

"I want more." he nodded. "I want it all. I know you're the one for me, so why shouldn't we think about our future?"

Her throat became dry, hope blossomed in her chest. "What about Lex? One day our luck could run out and he could kill us, or if it's not him it can be someone else and-"

"Fuck Lex." he sneered. "I refuse to give him the satisfaction of him messing with the way we decide to live."

Chloe nodded and looked down. She understood how he felt. She'd grown accustomed to a relationship free of expectations with him and hadn't realized what was missing. They had decided to live their lives like there was no tomorrow because the world was cruel for people in their line of business and they'd been happy. Yet they weren't whole, something had been missing. Now she knew, they both knew.

"Fuck Lex." she echoed him with a shy smile. "Let's do this."

He looked almost surprised. "Really?"

She encased his face in her hands. "I love you, Oliver Queen. I want to live the rest of my life with you by my side and I don't care how long we have left. We won't let anyone shape our future, no one but us."

A slow grin found his lips. "I love you, woman." he said before fusing their mouths together.

There it was. What had been missing. That union, that feeling of completeness that took over their beings and bound them together in an intangible yet unbreakable link. For the first time of their lives, they were one.

"Chloe," he gasped. "I would make love to you right now if it weren't for the others."

Her own breathing was ragged as she grinned up at him. "I know," she practically moaned and gave him a chaste kiss. "To be continued?"

"Definitely."

They untangled themselves. "Let's finish packing, I'm almost done here and we're getting close to the deadline now." she looked at her watch.

"Anyway," he sighed. "My case is done, I just want to call Mia, real quick. Haven't seen the kid in a while and since it won't be safe to talk to her later, I just want to make sure she knows what's going on. Think she'll be okay with Lois?"

Chloe nodded. "She loves Mia like a sister now, don't worry about it. Call her, I'm just about finished here anyway." she rubbed his chest.

"Alright." he kissed her quickly and winked before heading for the door. Oliver did his best to neuter his expression but he couldn't quite suppress his smile when he left the bedroom and noticed Victor and Dinah's figures waiting with their cases at their feet in the main room.

"Hey," he called out. "Ready to roll, already?"

Victor nodded and opened his mouth to talk when the windows shattered and a storm filled the room. "FBI! FBI! FBI!"

Countless black figures filled the penthouse in a matter of seconds, all screaming, all waving loaded weapons around. "FREEZE!" Oliver had barely turned around he was being tackled to the ground.

"What the hell-"

"Shut up!" the man pressed his gun against his skull and shoved his hands behind his back.

"What is this? What are you doing? Don't touch me!" Chloe screamed.

"CHLOE!"

He saw her being pushed against the wall in the corridor, handcuffs around her wrists in her back. "Oliver!"

"Shut up!" the man on him ground out again.

Dazed, he looked around, seeing her being pushed towards the main room where both Dinah and Victor were kneeling on the debris of glass and guns pointed at them. He wiggled against his captor, making him stumble.

"J'ONN!" he shouted. "J'ONN!"

If there was someone here who could get them out of this situation, it was him. He was the only one immune to bullets. "You shut the fuck up, I said! Fuckin' slime, I'll knock you out if you try that again, you hear me?"

The agent pulled at his hair, Oliver held back a cry of pain and called for J'onn again. A door banged and he appeared, his hands raised and beads of sweat running down his face. "I'm sorry, Oliver." the Martian expressed, walking in reverse out of the room. "I couldn't do anything."

J'onn eyes never left the alit torch waved before him by another agent. Oliver exhaled and let his forehead hit the floor in defeat. It all happened in thirty seconds, and they never saw it coming.

The elevator's gates were pulled open, Oliver didn't bother looking up when he heard the footsteps moving up the hallway and stopping in front of him. "Oliver Queen," a new voice barked. "You are under arrest for conspiring against the government of the United States of America, you and your friends will be transferred to a high-security facility for interrogation. You have the right to remain silent.

Although... I'd advise you against it."


	11. Chapter 11: In Custody

**Chapter 11: In Custody**

 _'Darker times call for darker methods' – Lex Luthor, Season 1, Episode 9: "Rogue"._

* * *

 **August** **30th** **2011\. No more information.**

" _Last minute information straight from the Federal Bureau of Investigation's headquarters at Washington D.C.: Oliver Queen was arrested at his penthouse in Metropolis where he was with his longtime girlfriend Chloe Sullivan and several unnamed friends who were all taken with him."_

" _Well, how about that?" another voice wondered._

" _And this isn't it! Daniel Thompson, the FBI director released a press communiqué stating and I quote: 'Oliver Queen was apprehended in company of Chloe Sullivan and three more persons at his penthouse in Metropolis' Clocktower. The arrest happened at 10pm on Monday the 29_ _th_ _and there was no resistance from the suspects.'"_

" _It's worth noting that at the moment, we do not have the slightest clue about the reason of this arrest, it's all quite mysterious."_

 _The presenter chuckled. "We will keep talking about it for sure, but first it's time for an ad break. Stay tuned! There might be development when we come back because I remind you: Oliver Queen was arrested by the FBI last night. We'll take the break now, I'll see you in five minutes."_

"Eh they'll know soon enough!"

"Yeah, Riley cut that off now I'm damn tired of these ads." another voice growled.

Riley executed himself and looked behind him towards the back of his van. Several bagged heads stared back at him and he felt a smirk pull at his lips. "Heard that comrades? You're national news now and well on the way to go international!"

He earned himself a shove. "Jesus, relax."

The other man gave him a look. "You were barking my ear off, how about you shut up? I've been driving this damn thing for the last four hours."

"Come on we can switch, Lenny." Riley proposed.

"No need," Lenny said. "Look, we're there."

Back a few feet, Oliver couldn't see anything more than darkness. The black tissue covering his face did its job well, and he doubted it was used often on simple citizens. He squeezed Chloe's hands behind him and eased back when he felt her repeat the action. She was fine.

How long had they been in there? Oliver had lost track of time 500 miles ago and his estimation varied between five to twelve hours. Nothing more than a day though, the two agents at the front only stopped twice just to switch places at the wheel.

There were cramps in his knees and his back felt like a mistreated carpet. His wrists itched to be released but his ears remained wide open. Hours after hours of driving had almost lulled him to sleep multiple times but he'd been sharp enough to notice a few things.

Riley, the cheerful and annoying agent at the front, had been the one to tackle him down and threaten him at home. He'd been talking non-stop since the beginning despite the many warnings the other one, Lenny, had given him.

Lenny. He'd been the one to handle the torch against J'onn. That fact alone proved they either got their information from a very knowledgeable source whose identity was no secret to them or, they were not FBI.

Lex or Regan. That was the question in a nutshell.

Now, there was a third agent in the van. One who hadn't piped one word for the whole ride. He was seated at the back with them, probably by J'onn's side. Oliver had heard the torch being put off right after he was forced in the vehicle and his ear hadn't picked up the telling crackles of any fire. It rose the question of how they managed to keep the Manhunter under their control.

The answer eluded him and he felt a growing fear in his stomach.

He felt the van slowing down and pulling to a halt. Lenny and Riley got out. More engine noises covered their footsteps, the distinct sounds of several vehicle driving past them filled his ears. Two, three... five, seven, eight... nine... ten! Oh it was convoy, alright.

The back doors cringed open. A third voice shouted at them: "On your feet ladies and gentlemen, we won't stay around all day! Up and moving, people, up and moving! You're prisoners of the government now, let's not waste time!"

Oliver shook his head, feeling it spin. The man had some resonance in him, he could wake up even the heaviest of sleepers – dead ones. One hand pulled at his arm. "Get moving, Queen! Now's too late to back off!"

The hand nearly dragged him out of the van and his ear was hurting. Now he recognized that voice, it was the agent who announced their arrest. He must have taken another ride, he didn't sound like the quiet type who had accompanied them at the back of the van.

Someone shoved him forward. "Come on!" It was Riley. Oliver remained silent and walked. He heard footsteps all round him. They were probably walking in line and he was the last one. Chloe was in front of him, he could pick out her light footing anywhere.

There was more. More stepping, more walking, more marching; much much more. How many men were there? Probably fifty... possibly more. He wasn't given time to reflect upon that, for the footsteps became muffled and his own and the ones before him echoed louder.

Tiles. They were in the facility now. It all became a dance from that point on. They were led through many corridors, turning here and there and back again. He knew what they were doing. Confusing the new inmates so they couldn't guess which way was out.

They played this game for at least half an hour. When they finally stopped at a door, Oliver's knees weren't aching anymore but he felt sore. A key turned, once, twice and the door was unlocked. Chains whistled. Oliver thought he heard Chloe's sigh somewhere close.

An agent turned his hands and unlocked his handcuffs then pulled his arm forward. Oliver flexed his muscles, the agent couldn't get his arm to move. "Don't try to play smart now, Richie boy." Riley's annoyed voice made him smirk and he eased himself.

On again went the bracelets. This time his wrist were locked together in front of him and a chain was tied to his feet. He was pushed back and stumbled on a chair with a groan. "Sit!"

Silence settled upon them for a minute, giving him time to breathe and gather himself. Then came the light assaulting him. Oliver hissed and squinted as a satisfied laugh rattled his nerves. He took a while to make out the room through the blur.

It was dark. Aside from the strong light directed at his face, there was nothing but darkness. He saw Chloe sat beside him and squinting as well. She too, was chained up. There was Riley's punchable face grinning down at him when he adjusted the light.

"Leave us."

A chill crept up his spine and Oliver closed his eyes for an instant. He could smell some smoke behind them. "Hello to you too, Lex." he mocked. "We gonna stay in this position or you'll grow some balls and show yourself?"

"Oliver..."

Chloe's quiet warning was too late. Oliver let out a shout and tried to stop his body from writhing.

"What are you doing? Stop it!"

The buzzing ceased, leaving him struggling for breath as Lex moved in front of them, his ever-present condescending and hate-filled grin in place. "What do you want?" Chloe hissed. For the first time since he got in the facility, Oliver realized there was only him and Chloe in the room with Lex and another man behind them.

"What do I want?" Lex repeated in a experimental tone. "We'll start with the easy questions first: Why did you ignore my warnings the last time we met? Wasn't losing Allen enough for you?"

Oliver huffed. "You thought you had us off you back didn't you?" he sneered. "For all these months you had no one to fear and now look at that! Brand new facility just for our benefit, I bet. Don't piss your pants too much or that white suit of yours will turn yellow."

Lex's features hardened and the buzzing started again. This time, it was Chloe who screamed. "STOP IT!" Oliver yelled, he could do nothing but watch her convulse and suffer until her torturer decided she'd had enough.

"Bastards." he spat.

"This is going to be interesting." The grin was back on Lex's face. "Keep on stalling, Oliver, I know you have no one to save you. And we have days, full days at our disposition to make you talk."

"Which implies the damn question: what do you want?" Oliver reiterated Chloe's question in anger.

There was a weak cough from his side. "You can try and torture us for however long you want, Lex. You can even kill us. If it's not us, it will be someone else. No one is untouchable forever."

Lex smirked at Chloe. "This is quite entertaining to see you fight against my authority but you forget something: I own the Justice League now. Arthur Curry? He's been in my hands for months. You just made my task easier when you decided to regroup yourselves." he chuckled. "You served me your friends on a plate!"

"Where are they?" she challenged.

He couldn't quite get rid of the laughter in his expression. "Let's not get too carried away, you won't see your friends again. There is no need to worry about them now, is it?"

"You better watch out." Oliver's dark tone surprised even Lex. "The next time we get our hands on you, we bother throwing you in jail. I'll kill you myself."

Lex leaned towards him. "I don't think you're being too receptive, Queen. Maybe we should help you with that."

Oliver's vision went blank as his body trembled and he threw his head back, strange noises leaving his mouth. Chloe's yells nearly didn't reach his ears and his lungs burned when the buzzing finally came to an end.

His head lolled forward for a moment and he could hear nothing but his own breathing. A slap drew him back. When he looked up, Lex was seating in front of them. "Better yet?"

Oliver swallowed blood. "Fuck you." he whispered.

"I'll take that as a yes, if you don't mind." the other man replied. "Now, here is my first question: whilst I do have all your friends in my hands, there is still one who's been somewhat hard to find."

Chloe snorted. "Yes, you know who I'm talking about, Chloe. I know he hasn't been around in more than a year. Clark seems to have improved in blending in with the mass, that's a definite."

"So?"

Lex turned to Oliver. "So? Where is he?"

He started to laugh. Oliver could not say whether it was an after-effect of the electrocution or if his nerves were cracking but he kept on laughing until there was a mask of irritation on Lex's face. "I'm relieved to see you're having fun, Oliver."

"Fuck off, Lex!" he chuckled, having a hard time stopping his hiccups. "You've always been a loser."

Lex was openly seething now. He extended his palm towards the man behind them and retrieved a cigarette. "Maybe it's time I stop being so accommodating." Without any more warning, he applied the lit butt of the cigarette on Oliver's neck.

The blond's laugh left him the second his skin started to burn. He pinned Lex with a deep stare and locked his jaw, determined not to show any sign of pain. His breathing grew more ragged with each passing second and Lex's sadistic smile did not help the matter.

When Lex pressed harder onto the cigarette, Oliver leaped out of his chair and head butted the other man, sending him sprawling on the ground. A harsh blow hit him behind his skull and Oliver was forced to sit again as Chloe's wide eyes watched the entire scene incredulous.

Lex found it difficult to stand again, he pressed a hand to his forehead and glanced at Oliver in a mixture of rage and disbelief. Two minutes later, he retrieved his chair and pushed it closer to Chloe, grabbing her arm and drawing her sleeve back to expose her milky skin.

He held the cigarette up again and stared at Oliver. "Last chance." he announced quietly. "Where is Clark?"

One second, two, three... they stared at each other.

Lex pursed his lips. "Very well." The cigarette went headfirst towards Chloe's forearm and she flinched in anticipation.

"I don't know!" Oliver ground out.

His words made Lex freeze and look at him skeptically. "You will have to do better than that if you want to spare her the pain." he started his task again.

"He's training! In the fortress."

"The fortress is gone." Lex's voice was filled with exasperation. "Every satellite image confirms this and no manned expedition could find it, don't try to play me."

"It's the truth!"

Lex shook his head and clucked his tongue.

"He's saying the truth." Chloe breathed. "Clark left us to have his kryptonian training in the fortress. When he activated the process it locked him inside and made it all disappear so he could not be disturbed. That's all we know and that's the truth."

Lex gazed at her face for a long time, assessing her words. The cigarette was still dangerously close to her skin and Oliver was itching to put his fist through the man's face for even touching her. Finally, after a tense stare down, Lex leaned back and threw the cigarette away.

"When will he be back?"

Chloe gulped. "He said he'd be gone for years, even him didn't know how long it would take."

The man gave a nod and looked deep in thought. Oliver used the moment to gaze at Chloe, his eyes soft and questioning. She smiled and nodded at him. He was appeased.

Lex scratched over his hip and straightened in his chair. "Second question." he paused for effect. "Where is the Watchtower?"

Chloe and Oliver looked at each other in mild confusion. "I am Watchtower." she said.

He watched them, annoyed. "Are you trying to play dumb, now? My patience is wearing thin! Where is the Watchtower?" his voice rose. "The building, Where is it?!"

This time, they said nothing. Lex pursed his lips. "Enough is enough, we'll take this a notch higher." he watched the man behind them. "Get the tools out."

Before the agent could make any movement, the light went out as a dull bang could be heard. Soon after, murmurs went through the corridors behind the door. Lex rose, his chair squeaking. "Stay put." he ordered and went outside.

"What is it? Why are the lights out?" they could hear him asking.

"We don't know yet, Mr. President." the loud-mouthed officer replied. "It looks like there was an issue with the power generator."

"How is this possible?" Lex hissed. "There are three back-up units in this room, how come not even one of them picks up after the first one?"

"Huhh..." the man sensed he was in trouble and fumbled in his pockets. "I'll... I'll ask, sir."

A talkie-walkie beeped. "Marko? Marko this is Casey, what's with the power outage?"

No answer. "Marko, do you copy?"

"Well?" Lex's impatient voice asked.

Casey cleared his throat and tried again. "Marko?" The talkie beeped back. "Marko, is this you?"

A silence followed until the talkie winced and let out and loud terrifying wail. Oliver felt goosebumps on his skin. "Marko? Marko!"

"Ca..." the talkie said.

"Marko?"

"Casey help me!" It wailed again. "There's a creature attacking me, it's blown up the generator. It's going after me! Hel –" white noise followed.

The mood became tense and sweaty when no more word was said. Oliver pictured Lex and Casey exchanging a look. Then the alarm blared, nearly deafening them. Lex kicked the door open. "The facility's been compromised! Get everyone out and escort these two at the closest FBI office!" he ran away without so much as a glance to Chloe or Oliver.

"Wimp." Oliver muttered.

"Ollie, what do you think's going on?"

"No idea, beautiful. We'll know soon enough... I guess."

The man behind them growled. "Shut. Up." He put a hand on their shoulders and lifted them both on their feet without much effort. "Walk." he ordered.

"Gee, buddy kind of a party pooper, aren't you?"

"Shut up."

Oliver chuckled as they were led through the corridors in a hurry. "You were beaten as a child or you were born stupid?"

"Oliver!" Chloe whispered.

Too late, he winced when another blow hit the back of his skull. This man sure had some strength. "Shut. up." he repeated.

"Alright, dude. You're the boss here."

It was when the pipes on the ceiling decided to blow. Hot steam started to fill the hallway until Oliver couldn't see more than a feet or two in front of him. "Casey, this is Lenny." a voice filtered through the smoke screen. "We're in trouble, we're in trouble! We're going to need some assistance getting outta here!"

The answer came the next second. "All my men are gone, you're on your own, Lenny!"

The agent cursed. "Are you kidding me?!"

Oliver's attention deviated the moment his eyes made out a dark blur enveloping Chloe's entire frame, her blonde head disappeared under her muffled screams and an animalistic hiss. His eyes still saw the two pointy horns when his mind processed the fact that she wasn't in front of him anymore.

"Chloe? Chloe!"

"What the fuck?" Riley shouted. "Something took the girl!"

"The hell with this!" Lenny's voice trembled. "Leave her be, we're getting out of this hole!"

Despite Oliver's resistance, the small group ran through the corridors, escaping bloody noses on the few occasions the steam hid a wall in front. They went much faster when the brute picked up Oliver and hurried after Lenny and Riley. "CHLOE!"

"Shut up!"

The outside light shone through the steam and they were almost out when the brute froze and threw Oliver out, his chains rattling on the asphalt. "Guh!" The hero watched in horror and wonder a pair of dark hands with long claws reminding him of a vampire shoot out of the steam and grab the brute's neck.

The man's eyes nearly popped out of his head and he opened his mouth, the beginning of scream leaving his throat when he was literally aspired inside and disappeared through the steam. Some fighting inside reached Oliver's ears for a moment until it faded fast and everything became silent again.

"Come the fuck on!" Riley shouted, finding uncharacteristic force to pull Oliver into the van and close the doors. The vehicle sped away, its tyres squealing as it flew down a deserted highway.

"What was that?"

Oliver heard over the engine. "What do you think it was? Luthor warned us there was something shady with these people. Hell maybe this thing wasn't even human, what do I know?" Lenny half-shouted from the wheel.

The van jumped over a bump on the road. Oliver hit the wall and grunted. Rubbing his head to ease the pain helped him out of the passive state that submerged him the moment he was dragged in the vehicle. His analytical mind came back with a force and two points contrasted with his last ride in this van.

His head was un-bagged. Lenny and Riley hadn't taken the time to suit him as they had for the incoming ride. Oliver could now see the inside of the vehicle and in particular, the lack of protective fencing between the front and the back.

Second, he was still chained. They were fitted to him once he went in the facility, his hands and feet tied together to prevent him from going too far too fast. Oliver, however, had another idea. He studied the chain and pulled the excess up into his hands, playing with it for a moment.

The men at the front were too preoccupied with directions to watch over him. Gone was their controlled and almost jovial mood and there was his chance.

"Goddamnit!" Lenny exploded. "Find the map! Can't make a stupid GPS work you dumb-"

Riley fiddled with the gloves compartment. "If you just slowed the fuck down for a second maybe I could..."

"I'm not slowing down! That thing could still be behind us."

"It's not following us, braindead!"

Lenny gave him a dirty look. "Shut your mouth and get me that damn map or I'll –" The threat died on his lips when two rolls of chains looped against his neck, cutting off his air supply.

"What –" A well-placed kick sent Riley's head crashing against the sidedoor, his body leaning over the dashboard.

Lenny's hands left the wheel for his neck, gasping for air. Oliver tightened his grip on him, a fury he'd never known in the past overwhelming him. He didn't notice Riley trying to control the wheel as Lenny's reflexes pressed harder on the gas.

The van was gunning over the highway, swaying from left to right and flirting with the barriers in a dangerous dance. Riley tied the wheel straight against the gearstick with a coat and let out a desperate shout as he jumped on their assailant.

Oliver was pushed back and lost his grip on Lenny, hearing bones cracking just before Riley started pummeling his face in a rain of hard fists. He could taste the blood running down his nose and held his hands up to protect his face. Riley wouldn't have any of it but was forced to yield when Oliver kicked him off him and they fell side by side.

The van bumped again making them stumble and use the walls as support to stand up. Facing each other, Riley smirked and motioned his adversary forward. "Let's see what you got, pretty boy." he baited.

Oliver watched him through half-lidded eyes. "What?" the agent laughed. "Too scared to be in a fair fight with a real man? And you call yourself a hero?" he spat. "Pussy!"

It was the last word Oliver heard him say. Barely a second later, his handcuffed fists went through his face and Riley recoiled against the wall before slipping down, out. His ex-prisoner raised an unimpressed eyebrow and turned to a more pressing matter.

He realized in horror that Lenny's head was hanging backwards while the van sped at full-regime towards a full concrete wall. Throwing himself on the ground, Oliver scrambled to get his hands on any handle he could find and braced himself.

The shock followed suit, Oliver held on even as he felt himself being propelled forward until he felt weightless. He closed his eyes tightly and, for a long second, nothing happened. Then it shook again and rolled. How many times – he couldn't tell, he lost grip with it and trashed with the vehicle, ending the nightmare with a final bang.

He yelled out when the van stopped. Oliver opened his eyes, finding himself laying on the ceiling at Riley's unconscious side and a hand on his bicep. He bit his lip, feeling the tears prickling his eyes as the intense pain brisked in his left arm.

"Fuck," Oliver whispered, getting his breathing under control. _I have to get out_ , he thought through the dizziness. Raising his head towards the back doors, he didn't trust himself to be able to move yet. Instead, he tried the simplest option.

Loud bangs echoed through the vehicle. His ears hurt but he kept on kicking, using up the remains of his strength in the task. Out of breath, Oliver admitted defeat after a moment. "Fuck!"

He closed his eyes and saw Bart's face.

Opening them again immediately, he shook his head and looked up again. There was a handle mechanism on the doors. He strained to have his foot make contact with it, biting on his tongue to fight against the pain in his arm.

He felt the steel lever and had to repeat the process three times until he managed to pull in downward. The doors cringed but did not move. Oliver took in a deep breath and used both of his legs to give a strong blow on them.

The light nearly blinded him. He laid back and coughed. He swallowed his saliva to get rid of the dust itching in his throat and closed his eyes again. Bart smiled at him, so did he. _Not today, buddy... not today._

Slipping out of the damaged van proved harder a task than he'd expected. Oliver just had to wiggle himself out but his arm restricted his freedom of movements and getting out became a long process. It could have been ten minutes, it could have been an hour... he didn't dwell on it.

Sitting up brought another issue. The world around him was spinning and his stomach rebelled. He had to use one of the doors to lie back against and wait for the nausea to fade away. Prying his eyes open again, he took in the houses and small buildings around him.

He was in a town. "Hello?" The cry rippled off the walls multiple times but met no answer.

Oliver winced and slowly stood up. Cradling his arm as well as he could with the chains, he spared one glance at the van and grimaced. They hit the wall dead on. The engine compartment had almost disappeared in its entirety and larges gashes and bumps on every side of the vehicle proved they must have rolled down the entire length of the street only to end their course against a second wall.

He sniffed and spat blood, deciding to find someone to help him. "Hello?"

Oliver dragged himself towards what he supposed was the main street and had a moment of hesitation when he saw the large road surrounded on each side by a row of houses and shops. He looked from left to right in wonder. It was bare of any sign of human activity. There were no cars, no one walking on the sidewalk and a complete and unnerving silence.

He was in a ghost town.

"Hello!" He screamed and opened his eyes wide and incredulous. He didn't know why but he started to cry. The blur of his tears added to his dizziness and he staggered towards the middle of the road. Crashing down on the highway, Oliver cried harder. "Chloe... Chloe..." he whispered.

"CHLOE!"

He dropped his head and felt himself go. Just before blacking out, a whistle cut through the silence from afar. It grew louder and louder, forcing him to look up. Oliver blinked and saw a dark spot in front of him.

It became bigger by the second and the whistle drew closer. He breathed harshly and heard tyres screeching before his head fell back and the depths of nothingness engulfed him.

 **THE END**

 _ **A bit of a delay for the final chapter due to AO3's current connection troubles. Nevertheless, this fic is complete. The third book in the Eternal Wrath series and yet there are many more to come.

I know being a reader of mine requires patience and I hope I'm rewarding you guys well enough when I deliver. What do you think?

The transition one-shot is on my list of things to do before the end of the year as well as (I promised to noellesullivan) a companion piece to Public Enemy centering on Oliver's struggle back to reality with Roulette. These, I plan to post them in the next couple of months.

Now the sequel on the other hand... well, considering the IRL obligations I'm going to have in 2016 I can only promise to start posting it during the next summer (probably August 2016). Though, if I do enough find time to write during the next semester, I might (emphasis on 'might') be able to give you an early update, no promises there of course.

Please bear with me and thank you for sticking around and everyone who commented, noellesullivan, teamolicity123 and Malugargula, it always feels very rewarding to have direct reaction so, big thank you to you three.

**_

 _ **Cheers!**_


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